Campers & Counselors
by TeenDisney
Summary: Time for Ally to return to camp, but this time as a counselor. And to her horror, she's stuck working with the owner's godson Austin. Ally hates him, and he loves to bug her. But when Ally and Austin endanger the lives of the other campers, they're being forced to spend all day together for the rest of the summer. Will Austin prove to be a nice guy or exactly how she expected?
1. Chapter 1: Campers & Counselors

**I don't own any songs or Austin & Ally.  
**

* * *

**Chapter 1.**

If there was one thing I had mixed feelings about, it was Summer Music Camp. During the last two months of school it was the only thing I could think about.

Summer Music Camp was – obviously – a camp that focused on music, and anything to do with music. I had been attending it since the summer before 6th grade.

At first I was peeved that my dad was sending me there. It was in the mountains a bunch of miles away from all of my friends, and I had to cancel all my plans for the summer. But when I got there, it was amazing. I made new friends that attended my rival school, and I actually got to sing and show off my own songs.

"Ally!" my best friend Trish squealed running to hug me.

I gave her a huge hug back. "Oh my God, hi Trish!" I greeted and we looked around at the camp. "Can you believe that we're finally back?"

She shook her head. "I know. School went by so fast…thank God." She grinned at me. "And the best part…we're counselors!"

I grinned and nodded. After five years of being a regular camper, I had finally upgraded to a camp counselor!

"I know! Do you realize we're shaping the minds of our future?" I asked Trish and she shrugged.

"I'm just excited that I get to boss people around, and make them work for me." She replied and we both laughed, but she stopped suddenly. "Oh my – Ally, what the hell are you wearing?"

I looked down at what I had on. It was a white ruffle dress, and a thick beige belt.

"What? It's from Forever 21. You don't like it? It's the belt isn't it? I knew it was too much!" I began to take the belt off, but Trish shook her head.

"No, no. I like the dress, and the belt is fine." She assured me. "But what is up with the shoes?"

"Oh." I looked down at my black, worn out Chuck Taylors. "Come on Trish, its tradition. I always enter camp in my old Chuck Taylors, and something white."

She gave me a look and I pouted. "Oh whatever! Just show me our cabin."

She smiled and we turned around only to nearly run into the camp owner.

"Whoa!" he said steadying me. "You alright Ally?" he asked.

"Yeah, sorry Uncle Chip." I apologized grinning.

Uncle Chip wasn't really my Uncle. He's just so cool that he hates it when the campers or counselors call him 'Mr. Chip' or – even worse – 'Sir'. He says that he isn't old enough to be considered a 'Mr' or 'Sir'; which is true. He's only twenty-five.

And yes, before you even ask, I may have the teeniest-tiniest of crushes on him. But I can't help it, he's smart, funny, loves music and kids, and he's unbearably cute. Still, nobody knows. Well, nobody but Trish.

"It's fine. Just watch your step. Don't want another repeat of summer 2010." He smirked at me, and I blushed beat red.

Two summers ago, a bunch of other campers and I decided to climb a tree. I had almost made it half way when I stepped wrong and it sent me tumbling only to get snagged on a branch and dangle there for half an hour. A fellow camper had tried to help me get off of the branch, but he was laughing so hard that he had managed to make my shirt get torn off. I fell five feet, broke my arm, and was completely exposed to the whole camp. Luckily Uncle Chip was there and I was only exposed for five seconds until he put his coat around me.

Trish laughed. "That was hilarious." I shot her a quick glare and she stopped laughing. "Um, I mean – completely horrible and not funny in any way."

I rolled my eyes and Uncle Chip smiled. "Oh, here." He dug around in the box he was holding and tossed two red Summer Music Camp shirts at us. "Put those on. They're the official camp counselor t-shirts. Se you girls later, I have to go make sure everyone is doing their job right." He ruffled my hair and walked away. I let out a longing sigh and watched him walk away.

Okay, so maybe it's a little more than a teeny-tiny crush.

Trish laughed from beside me. "In your dreams Ally." She said and tugged me away.

"Ally!" my other cabin mate, and good friend, Cassidy Grey squealed and gave me a huge hug. "I've missed you! How are you?"

I smiled. "I'm great thanks. Wow, you look great. I love your bangs."

She touched her bangs gently and smiled. "Thanks, my mom said that it compliments my eyes, but I wasn't too sure."

I nodded and smiled genuinely, but then I pointed at the extra bed. "So who's our fourth cabin mate?"

Cassidy grinned. "Nobody. Mindy came down with the chicken pox and couldn't come. It's just us!"

We cheered for a little bit, and then Cassidy checked the time. "We better get going or else we'll be late for the opening greeting."

I groaned and flopped on the bed. "Are you sure we can't be there a little late?"

The Opening Greeting was basically a performance from Uncle Chip's godson. I couldn't stand the guy. He was cocky and conceited and he thought he was all that and a bag of chips because he's a really good singer. Plus, he made it his mission in life to make me fall for him because I'm the only girl in the camp that doesn't fawn over him. Well, other than Trish, but she doesn't really like anyone.

Not to mention that he was the camper who exposed me two summers ago.

Cassidy and Trish shared a look and sure enough, dragged me to the performance area just in time to see him get on stage.

"Hey new campers, I'm Austin Moon, and this is a new song that I wrote." His eyes searched the crowd and when they stopped on mine he smirked. I turned red and glared at him.

_Hey princess, in a white dress_  
_Chuck Taylors got me obsessed_  
_I wanna see you so when can we hang out_

I could practically hear Trish and Cassidy shaking with silent laughter as I stared at Austin open-mouthed. This was a constant with him. He would write a song about me in an attempt to woo me even though we both know that he couldn't stand me. But honestly, he couldn't make it any more obvious that this song was about me. I tugged on my red shirt so it would cover more of my white dress.

_Hey princess, in a contest_  
_You're the queen and you own the rest_  
_Someday we're gonna take the crown_

_Let's go, let go_  
_Hold on to me, oh, oh_  
_Let's go, I'ma let you know_

_I'll be the one to storm in the castle_  
_We'll be the two hearts beating faster_  
_Whatever you want, whatever you want, I'm down_

_I'll be the one that makes you adore me_  
_We'll be the two, the two end of story_  
_The one that I want, one that I want I found_  
_It's your kiss, hey princess_

_Hey princess, be my guest_  
_Chase you around, no regrets_  
_If I catch you, I'll never let you down_

_Let's go, let go_  
_Hold on to me, oh, oh_  
_Let's go, I'ma let you know_

_I'll be the one to storm in the castle_  
_We'll be the two hearts beating faster_  
_Whatever you want, whatever you want, I'm down_

_I'll be the one that makes you adore me_  
_We'll be the two, the two end of story_  
_The one that I want, one that I want, I found_  
_It's your kiss, hey princess_

Campers and counselors were going crazy, but I just stood there and clapped while rolling my eyes. Hate to admit it, but Austin was a pretty good singer…and dancer…and he wasn't bad looking, not that it mattered.

"Yes, yes. He's very good." Uncle Chip said coming on stage and throwing his arm over Austin's shoulder. Then he put him in a headlock and gave him a noogie. "But he'll always be my baby godson."

Everyone laughed and Austin shoved himself out of Uncle Chip's grip and tried to smoothen out his messy dyed blond hair. He gave his godfather a playful shove and walked off stage.

Uncle Chip began his usual silly banter and babble about how we're a family, and we should treat each other like a family. But despite our definitions of 'family' violence isn't tolerated.

Finally he let the campers go roam and explore, but he called all the camp counselors into his office. He made all the newbies line up in front while the older counselors sat down comfortably.

I began to fidget and my knees got wobbly as Uncle Chip introduced us. When he finally allowed us to sit down with everyone else I was so relieved that I hadn't even noticed I was sitting next to Trish and…Austin. He gave me a smirk and turned his attention to Uncle Chip while I tried to scoot away from him.

"Alright, so these are the assignments." I didn't pay much attention until he gave me my assignment. "Ally, you'll be in charge of piano lessons, and you'll be life guarding with Austin."

"I'm doing what now?" I blurted out my head snapping up to look at Uncle Chip only to realize that Austin had said the same exact thing. "Uncle Chip I can't work with him! I'll end up killing myself…or him."

Uncle Chip shook his head. "Sorry Ally, but when the jobs are written down they can't be erased."

I nodded my head. "Yes they can! Don't you have an eraser on that pencil?"

Everyone chuckled and Uncle Chip shook his head again slightly smiling.

"You're just gonna have to live with it Ally." He said and looked Austin. "You got a problem with it?"

I turned around to look at Austin who was grinning evilly. "Not even a little bit. You just gave me more entertainment for the summer."

I groaned and began to chew on a piece of my hair. It was a really weird habit I had taken up when I was little.

* * *

"Why is he doing this to me? Does he hate me? Did I do something completely horrible and painful to him in a past life?" I asked Trish and Cassidy later that night, making them laugh.

I got out of bed and walked over to the window to close it only to see a shirtless and wet Austin outside of his cabin, which was right across from mine. I may hate the guy and think he's a total punk, but he has an amazing body, and I might have ogled for a little bit.

But when I saw the group of campers giggling and ogling him I rolled my eyes. He was so enjoying that. "And now I have to deal with him being shirtless and wet all the time because he apparently enjoys swimming at night and lives across from us!"

"What?!" Cassidy exclaimed and ran to the window.

I rolled my eyes again and threw myself on my bed. "Cassidy, it is severely disappointing and gross that you have a crush on him."

"I don't have a crush on him!" Cassidy called at me from the window even though she didn't look at me. "He's just…fun to look at."

"Fun to look at?" Trish laughed from the bunk above mine.

Cassidy shot us a look and shrugged. "It's not my fault that he has good genes."

Trish got off of the top bunk and sat next to me. "Okay, so Ally has to work with Austin – whom she hates, and I have to work with that psychotic weirdo Dez – whom I hate. Who are you working with Cassidy?"

Then at that moment, the door opened and my breath caught. A boy with shaggy brown hair that I would love to run my fingers through, eyes that held nothing but light and kindness, and skin so perfect he could make even Austin jealous, walked in the room.

"Speak of the devil." Cassidy said and dragged the boy over to us. "Ally, Trish. This is my partner in crime, Dallas."

Dallas. What a nice name. Cute, and unique; like him.

"Hi. I'm Trish." Trish introduced herself and shook his hand.

"Hello." Dallas greeted kindly. Oh my. His voice made me melt. He turned to me.

"That must make you Ally." He smiled at me and I couldn't breathe. "Hi."

"Yes." I said and he furrowed his eyebrows and I heard my friends giggle. "I mean no! I mean…I'm Ally." I said weakly, finally shaking his hand.

"Okay." He laughed and shook my hand. "It's, uh, nice to meet you."

I smiled and my knees wobbled. He turned to Cassidy.

"I didn't make it to the assignment meeting, and all my cabin mates told me was that I was working with the 'hot babe named Cassidy' and pointed at you when you were in the window." Dallas explained and I couldn't help but burst into a hot white jealousy. "So do you know what my jobs are?"

Cassidy nodded. "We're in charge of the tree climbing club, and you also teach drumming lessons."

"Kay thanks." Dallas gave her a quick hug and exited the premises.

I glared at Cassidy. "You get all the luck!"

"What?" Cassidy asked and then she grinned. "No way! You have a crush on Dallas!"

I blushed. "Whaaaaaaaat? Ha, psh. No I don't. You have a crush on Dallas." I mumbled making my friend laugh. "Whatever. Let's just go to bed.

The next morning I had to report to lifeguard duty immediately, and just my luck, Austin was already there.

"Dawson, lookin' good." He teased lightly making me turn red.

"Just stay on your side of the beach, alright Blondie?" I ordered and he smirked.

"Fine. So I get the left side, and you get the right?" he asked and I nodded. "Cool."

After putting on some sun screen, I looked up to see Austin staring at me.

"What are you still doing here?" I asked, and he stared at me as if I were stupid.

"There's only one lifeguard tower." He pointed out and I huffed.

"Of course there is." I went out onto the small balcony and sat in the chair and scanned for drowning swimmers.

"How's it going out there Dawson?" Austin called from inside.

"Nothing so far Blondie. And even though the mere thought of being in the same room repulses me, aren't you supposed to be sitting out here with me?" I asked taking a look through the binoculars and scanning the lake.

"Yes, but it's hot." He replied and I rolled my eyes. What a baby.

"If we lose any extra swimmers, I blame you." I stated. "But it's probably a good idea that you stay inside. If we put any more weight on the balcony, it might break."

Austin poked his head out of the small room. "Are you calling me fat?"

"No, Pretty Boy. I'm just saying that this lifeguard tower might be unstable. It's been here since I first came here."

He rolled his eyes and started jumping up and down. "I don't see it breaking!"

I rolled my eyes and shot him one last look before looking into the binoculars again. "You are a child – oh my god!" I looked closer at the splashing in the water and without a second thought I was bounding down the beach.

It seemed I had reached the struggling boy in 2.2 seconds. I had my arm wrapped around him but when I tried to pull him away he feel out of my grip. I rubbed the water out of my eyes and looked around in panic, only to see Austin swimming away with _my _drowning swimmer.

I swam after him angrily and jerked the boy out of his arms.

"Dawson, what the hell are you doing?!" he shouted as I swam away with the boy.

"He was on my side of the beach!" I shouted back as I put the unconscious boy in the sand.

Austin appeared next o me. "No, he was on my side!"

We continued this argument for several more minutes – even while I was giving the camper mouth to mouth.

After the kid was taken away to the nurse's office, Austin and I continued our argument in the tower.

"He was my drowning swimmer! Who do you think you are, stealing my drowning people?!" I yelled at him.

"You said that I would have the left side and he was on the left side!" Austin exclaimed sounding exhausted.

I crossed my arms. "Blondie, where's your left?" I asked.

He rolled his eyes and pointed to the right. After moments of silence he put his hand down warily.

"That's your right! How can a sixteen year old boy be so daft?!" I shouted.

"Well I – did you hear that?" he asked, and we were quiet again.

There it was again, a crack. Then another crack. And then the lifeguard tower jerked to the side throwing me against Austin. He didn't have time to catch me and we tumbled to the ground. He ended up on top of me and our eyes were wide.

"The tower's coming down." He said in horror from above me and scrambled up. He ran to the doorway and looked back at me. I was frozen on the ground. "Dawson what are you doing?! We need to move!" there was another crack and the tower groaned and began to lean even more.

He huffed, ran over to me, picked me up bridal style and as we were on our way down the ladder the tower crashed. Causing Austin to fall and throw me from his arms.

"Ow, ow! Crap, my hand." He whined while I tried to catch my breath.

Thirty minutes later Austin and I were standing in Uncle Chip's office along with Trish, Dez, Cassidy, and Dallas.

"Unbelievable! Do you know how many campers were sent home because they were injured? 13?! Do you know how much property you all ruined?! A bunch!" Uncle Chip raged at us. He turned to me, Cassidy, and Trish. "What happened girls? You three are my best campers!"

All three of us girls started shouting at once and we all ended in unison.

"I can't work with him!" we shouted pointing at our partners.

Uncle Chip rubbed his face with his hands. "Ally, you nearly drowned one of our campers, and almost killed yourself and Austin. That lifeguard tower has been up there forever, what could you have possibly done to make it break?"

I rubbed my neck. "It wasn't my fault. Blondie is the one who tried to take my swimmer when I already had him! And he was the one who decided to jump up and down in the tower!"

We all turned to Austin who was immediately defending himself. "I was only jumping up and down because Dawson called me fat!"

"I didn't call you fat; I was saying that the tower could be unstable! Do you even listen to yourself when you talk?!"

"This is how you guys were acting in the tower?" Uncle Chip asked. "No wonder it broke down! This along with Trish dumping glue all over Dez and sticking him against the wall, and Cassidy pushing Dallas out of a tree is enough to make anyone break down!"

I looked at Cassidy. This type of behavior was usual for Trish, but Cassidy was usually the calm one. "Why'd you push him out of a tree?"

She crossed her arms across her chest. "I should not be held responsible for any actions I take when someone says something vulgar about my friends. It's not my fault that I smacked him down like the hand of God."

"What did he say?" Uncle Chip asked sounding puzzled. Cassidy whispered in his ear and Uncle Chip gave Dallas an appalled look. "Dallas!"

"What? It's true." Dallas shrugged. Cassidy stepped towards him menacingly and he ran to the end of the line.

Uncle Chip ran his hand through his dark hair. "That's it. I'm revoking all of your camp counselor statuses."

Immediately, all of us started to protest.

"But I get to boss people around!"

"The food is so much better!"

"We get hot showers!"

"We're shaping the minds of our future!"

"Fine, I have an idea." He said and smiled evilly.

Uh oh. This wasn't going to be good.

* * *

_Camp Days: 2 Days_

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**So review please and let me know if it was good! And the song is originally Hey Princess by Allstar Weekend.  
**


	2. Chapter 2: Delicate

**I don't own Austin & Ally. And also Ally's dress from last chapter is on my profile.**

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**Chapter 2.**

Austin POV

"Do you want the top bunk?" I asked setting my stuff on it anyway.

Ally shrugged sullenly and glared at me as if this whole situation was my fault.

"Does it really matter?"

I shrugged and turned away with a smile on my face. She was so cute when she got all mad at me.

Don't get me wrong, I don't have a crush on Ally. Sure, I pick on her to see her get all adorable, I dream about her occasionally, and she was absolutely hot when she was rubbing sunscreen on herself – but I don't have a stupid crush on her. Gross.

I looked back at Ally who was grumbling angrily to herself, and I rolled my eyes.

* * *

_30 minutes ago_

"Fine. I have an idea." Uncle Chip grinned and I groaned internally. I loved my godfather to death, but his ideas usually sucked. "Pack your bags, because you're getting new cabin mates."

We all looked at each other in confusion and I spoke up. "Huh?"

"Austin and Ally, Dez and Trish, Cassidy and Dallas, you are now bunk mates." He said and everyone's mouths dropped open.

"WHAT?!"

"You are all still camp counselors, but you will not teach the students anything. You still get all the privileges, but you will be with your new buddy 24/7. Er, except for when using the restroom of course."

"WHAT?!" we yelled again.

"And you will document some of your time together answering a few questions I will write and deliver to you later, and you will present it to the entire camp at the end of summer." Uncle Chip continued.

"WHAT?!"

"And to make up for all the chaos you have caused, the only time you won't be with your partners is the time you'll be doing your new jobs." Uncle Chip finished.

"WHAT?!"

* * *

I would be mopping the cafeteria floor, Ally would be helping Uncle Chip cook, Trish would be the maid along with Cassidy, and Dez and Dallas would clean the bathrooms.

There was a knock at our door and we turned around. It was Trish and my best friend Dez. Poor guy was still in pain from being unstuck from the wall.

"Hey Trish." Ally greeted sounding miserable. "What's up?"

She handed us separate pieces of paper. "These are the questions we have to answer."

"What's your favorite quality about your partner? What's something you learned about your partner?" I read some of the questions. "Well for the first question, she's hot, and for the second, she's totally into me." I answered bluntly and shot Ally a smirk, but she rolled her eyes.

"Easy, I don't have a favorite quality about you, and I learned that you're an egotistical weasel." She retorted and I grinned and held my hand over my heart.

"Oh you're breakin' my heart. Tell me how you really feel." I teased and she actually stuck her tongue out at me. "Don't tempt me Dawson."

She rolled her eyes and turned to Trish. "You're lucky, you get Dez. He's just a little weird, I get this doorknob." She gestured at me.

"Hey!" Dez and I protested.

They ignored us. "I'd rather have that doorknob than this weirdo." Trish disagreed.

"Guys, I'm gonna start crying." Dez said and I gave him a pat on the shoulder.

Trish sighed and turned to Dez. "Come on Bozo. We need to get started on the stupid presentation."

"Alright well I have an idea. How do you feel about swinging on a vine while singing?"  
Dez suggested.

When they left I hopped on my bed and hung upside down to look Ally who was lying in bed also. She looked at me with amusement and annoyance in her eyes.

"You're not going to do that often are you?" she asked, and I ignored her question.

"So what do you want to do for our presentation?" I asked, and she shrugged.

"I don't know. I really don't want to go on stage –"

"Why not?" I interrupted and she shook her head.

"I just don't. So maybe we could…I don't know. Video it?" she suggested and I grinned.

"That's what I was thinking too. It would be boring to just go up on stage and just start reading our answers to the questions." I said and she nodded.

I got down from my bed and sat at her feet with my video camera that Dez got me for Christmas.

"Here, film me first." I said tossing her the camera. She rolled her eyes and turned it on.

"Of course, Blondie has to be the center of attention or else he'll become a bitter old hag." She said to the camera and then turned it to me. "Alright, it's on."

I stared at her in amusement. "You know when you get all snippy I can actually see how badly you want me."

"Just answer the questions Blondie."

"You know, you call me 'Blondie' a lot. It's not exactly an insult. Why don't you just call me 'Austin'?"

Ally gave me a look. "Because just the sound of your name makes me want to puke."

I shot a wink at her. "You resentment is delicious."

"Alright, whatever Pretty Boy. Just answer the questions." She rolled her eyes.

"You're horrible at insulting nicknames. But we'll talk about it later." I said and she rolled her eyes again. "Okay, first question. What was your first impression about your partner? Well, I thought that she –"

"Knock, knock!" we looked up to see Uncle Chip in the doorway smiling at us. "See! You guys are getting along already!"

We stared him down and the smile slipped off of his face. "What?" he asked.

"I'd actually rather gouge my eyes out than spend the rest of the summer with him."

"You could always go back to being a camper…" Uncle Chip offered and I slapped my hand over Ally's mouth.

"No, no. We're fine." I said making Ally's head nod.

There was no way I was going back to being a camper. Sure, I loved it here, but the showers were always cold, the food wasn't all that great, and the senior camp counselors treated you like you were a baby.

"Okay." Uncle Chip gave us a weird look. "By the way, you guys got the wrong cabin."

"Huh?" I asked. "This isn't Cabin 321?"

Uncle Chip shook his head. "No. This is Cabin 871." He gave me a small sympathetic smile and walked away.

I felt something slimy and wet drag itself over the palm of my hand. I gave a girlish shriek and jerked my hand away from Ally's mouth.

"EW! Did you just lick me?!" I exclaimed and rubbed my hand on my shirt while Ally began to rub her tongue.

"Unfortunately, I did what I had to." She said sounding disgusted. "And how could you get our cabins mixed up?! I just got done packing."

"Sorry." I muttered and started to repack. I looked over at Ally who was pushing her clothes into a large suitcase and then I looked at my feet where her backpack laid. "Why do you have two suitcases?" I asked and she looked at me.

"I don't. I have a suitcase, and a bag." She said simply.

I rolled my eyes. "It's the same thing."

"No, it's not – are we seriously going to get into an argument about suitcases?" she asked looking exasperated and I smirked at her.

"As long as you continue to be wrong – yes." I said. She gave me a sharp glare making me smile.

"The suitcase has my clothes, and the bag holds stuff I need and things for entertainment." She explained and I opened the backpack. To my surprise she didn't start shouting at me.

"But there's just a bunch of books in here." I said going through her backpack and I found a little box. "What's this?"

She turned around to look at me and I was surprised to see a very cute smirk that is usually on my face. "Blondie?" she asked with her eyebrows raised in amusement, as if I was totally missing out on something.

"What?" I asked and read the box. My eyes widened and I chucked the box away from me causing her to laugh. I began rubbing my hand on my shirt as if to get the cooties off of my hand.

She walked over and picked the box up. "Relax Blondie. They're just –"

"No!" I shouted pointing at her. "Never speak of it!"

She laughed and tossed the box into her suitcase. I shuddered and continued through her backpack warily. At the bottom of her bag I found a brown leather book with a pink 'A' on it.

I took it out and started to open it. "What's this?" I asked and I barely even glanced at the first page when Ally smacked my hands and snatched the book away.

"Hey, hey! What's with the smacking?!" I asked rubbing my sore hand.

"Never. Touch. My. Book." She deadpanned.

I smirked at her. "I bet you don't want me to read it because you talk about how much you want me, huh?"

She looked at me. "Oh trust me, you're definitely mentioned in here a lot."

My head snapped up. Oh now I had to read it. What did she say about me? Was it good? "Oh come on Dawson, now I definitely have to read t!"

She shook her head. "No way."

I smirked and poured on the charm. I got real close to her, and she looked up into my eyes. "Dawson, please." I whispered and I think she stopped breathing which made me smirk. Oh she was so in love with me.

I reached around her and picked up the book. I had the book in my hand and back at my side when she snapped out of it. "Blondie!" she shouted and tried to get it back but I lifted it over my head. "Give it back!"

She grabbed my shoulder and jumped for it, but my balance wasn't too good and it sent us toppling over. Ally landed on top of me, knocking all the breath out of me. I gasped for air while trying to laugh. Ally propped herself up on her hands.

"Give me my book." She said in a breathy voice.

I stopped laughing and realized how beautiful she looked. Her hair was flipped over her shoulder and I could smell the strawberry scent. Her eyes were dark brown and big, making her look innocent.

"Here you go." I gasped out handing her the book.

"What is going on here?"

We looked up to see a very jealous looking Dallas and Cassidy standing in the doorway.

Ally got up and helped me up. "Oh um, uh nothing. We were just, um, packing." She said nervously.

"It looked like a little more than just packing." Dallas said glaring at me. What was his problem?

I shook my head. "Dawson's just embarrassed 'cause she doesn't want me to read all the 'Mrs. Austin Moon' writing in her diary."

Ally glared at me. "He stole my book and I was just trying to get it back." She explained. "So what are you guys doing here?" Ally asked Cassidy.

"Uncle Chip sent us. He said you guys need help finding your cabin." She said making me turn red. That was _so_ like him.

Ally gave me a look. "That would be nice."

We zipped up our packed bags and left the cabin. I didn't fail to notice how Dallas put his hand on her lower back and walked her out.

"Jealousy doesn't look good on you." Cassidy whispered to me as I watched Dallas make Ally laugh.

I looked at Cassidy. She was definitely the hottest girl in the entire camp, what with her dark blue eyes, perfect hair, and award winning smile.

Winning her over was easy; too easy. I wanted a challenge…like Ally.

But I was not jealous.

"Jealous?" I snorted. "If there is anything I'm not, it would be jealous."

Cassidy raised her eyebrows at me. "Oh really?"

I nodded. "It's common knowledge that I've been chasing after Dawson since the 6th grade just because she was the only one that didn't like me. I don't have any romantic feelings towards her; I just like getting a rise out of her."

Cassidy stared at me and shook her head. "You're so in love with her."

I looked at Cassidy in exasperation, looked ahead at Ally and Dallas, grabbed Cassidy around the waist, and dipped her. "If I were in love with Dawson would I do this?" I asked and mashed my mouth against hers.

It was short and when I pulled away and stoop up, Cassidy was breathing heavy. She looked at Ally and Dallas, who were staring at us.

Cassidy grinned. "Yes you would. To make her jealous." She pointed at Ally who did look a little annoyed which made me smirk. Then Cassidy slapped me across the face, but it wasn't hard enough to cause me pain. "And never use me like that again." She ordered.

I stood there feeling completely baffled by the strange girl while she ran to catch up with Dallas and Ally.

When I had finally made it to the cabin I could hear Ally and Cassidy talking while Dallas unpacked for Ally.

"Cassidy, this is stupid!" Ally whisper-yelled.

Cassidy shook her head. "Just tell me. Do you have feelings for Austin?"

Ally crossed her arms across her chest. "Yes Cassidy, I have feelings for Blondie." I stopped breathing and I was about to do a victory dance when she continued. "Feelings such as hatred, nausea, and disgust."

I couldn't help but feel hurt. I knew that Ally didn't really care for me, but I never knew that she _hated _me.

"Oh." Cassidy said and Ally laughed. "Just take it easy on him okay. There's something about him... he's delicate."

"Delicate?" I asked opening the door.

Ally and Cassidy's eyes were wide, knowing that I had heard their entire conversation.

"I'm gonna go for a swim." I muttered grabbing my towel.

Ally got in my way. "I guess I have to go with you." I shook my head.

"It's 6:00. You need to go help Uncle Chip cook." I told her, and jogged to the lake.

Ally POV

"Hey Uncle Chip." I greeted while putting my apron on. "Do you think you can help me with my hair net?" I asked and he laughed.

After it was safely on he began to show me what to do. "Okay. I need you to pour these cans of Campbell's cream of mushroom into this bowl, and then pour three cans of milk in the bowl, followed by 6 spoonfuls of mayonnaise. Then stir."

I nodded with a disgusted look on my face. "Um, okay."

Uncle Chip laughed at my face. "I'll be over here with the broccoli and chicken. Let me know if you need any help."

I did what he said and it was rather quiet when he suddenly appeared at my shoulder. He was so close I could hear his heartbeat; needless to say that I forgot to breathe.

"Alright good job." He gave me a high five.

"Uncle Chip, can I ask you a question?" I asked, and he nodded. "Why do you hate your campers?"

He stared at me and gave puzzled chuckle. "What?"

"This food is disgusting." I said and he laughed.

"Is it though?" he asked and took the spoon from my hands. He got a little of the grayish mush on the spoon and held it up. "Try it. I guarantee you'll like it."

I gave him an uneasy look and darted out my tongue to taste it. And to my surprise, he was right. It was delicious.

"How – that's delicious." I said in amazement and Uncle Chip grinned proudly.

"Yep! I make the gross food look delicious and delicious food look gross. I like to mess with the campers." He laughed and sprinkled a bunch of cheese into the mixture.

"Looks can be deceiving." I agreed while I stirred and he leaned against the counter.

"And that's what I wanted to talk to you about." He said. "Listen, Austin is my godson; I've loved him ever since I held him. Given I was only 9 years old, but he was still just this little 5 pound baby."

"Wait, why did you become the godfather if you were nine?" I asked realizing how weird that sounded.

Uncle Chip cracked a smile. "My brother is Austin's dad. He was seventeen when his girlfriend gave birth to Austin. They didn't have any friends, and she didn't have brothers so they asked me, and I said yeah."

I nodded. "Sorry. Continue."

"Anyway, I love Austin to death, and I know him really well, but I'd be lying if I said that I never thought about throwing him into Cootie Creek." Uncle Chip admitted making me laugh. "He's hard headed, and stubborn…and conceited as hell. But he's…delicate."

I furrowed my eyebrows. That was almost exactly what Cassidy had told me.

"He struggles a lot, and he's actually really sensitive and self conscious though he doesn't show it. He likes it when people think he's tough." Uncle Chip looked me in the eye and I noticed for the first time ever that he and Austin have the same eyes. "So I have no idea what could possibly have made him cave."

I tilted my head to the side in curiosity. "Wait, what?"

"Austin came to me a few minutes ago and said that he didn't want to work with you. He wanted to be a regular camper." Uncle Chip explained. "Which I don't understand because he hates being a camper."

I stared at the floor, my heart feeling heavy in my chest. "Well, he may have over heard me expressing my feelings in a…hurtful manner." I said feeling like the definition of crap. I looked up at Uncle Chip. "Let me talk to him. Maybe I can change his mind."

Uncle Chip grinned. "How did I know you were gonna say that?"

I grinned at him. "Because I'm your favorite camper." And without a second thought I ran out of the kitchen and to the docks.

Austin was sitting there watching the sunset and he had his guitar with him. He was actually playing a softer song than his usual pop boy band music.

"Blondie?" I said hesitantly and he turned around.

"Oh. Hey." He said unenthusiastically and turned back around. I sighed and sat down next to him.

I didn't know how to start. "I'm sorry Blondie." I said looking at my hands. "I don't hate you."

Austin was quiet. "I don't mean to sound like such a girl, but why would you say you did?"

I cracked a smile. "I don't know. You just irritate me so much sometimes that I actually think that I might hate you."

"Gee, that makes me feel better." He said and looked me up and down. He laughed. "Nice hairnet. Hot."

I rolled my eyes but I was smiling. "But I don't. Hate you, I mean. You just know exactly how to get under my skin."

Austin shrugged. "It's a gift."

I giggled. "Please don't give up on our project. I know that you really don't want to be a camper."

He sighed and looked at me. He looked like he was about to say something serious but then he laughed. "I'm sorry; I can't take you seriously in that hairnet."

"Blondie!" I gave him a playful punch on the shoulder.

He laughed and rubbed his shoulder. "Alright Dawson. Just never where that kitchen outfit in front of me again."

* * *

_Camp Days: 2 Days_

* * *

**Alright please review and tell me what you think. And I know some of you guys are bummed that you think there will be no more bickering Austin and Ally, but they don't really start to click until two more chapters.**

**Also it would be really cool if you guys checked out my other stories. You might enjoy them. **


	3. Chapter 3: Prank War

**I don't own Austin & Ally...unfortunately.**

* * *

**Chapter 3.  
**

Ally POV

It's been a week since I started camp, and despite the talk I had with Austin, things didn't change too much between us. We bickered constantly, he kept flirting with me, and once we were hanging out with Trish and Dez, and we got into such a heated argument Dez started crying.

"Hey Dez." I greeted when he walked up to me on the dock.

"Hey. Why are you all alone?" he asked and I shrugged.

"There's something about being alone at night. Underneath the stars." I said looking up at the stars. "It's comforting. Don't you think?"

Dez nodded and he lay down next to me. "I used to go camping with my parents when I was little, and I would find a picnic table and just lie on it until my parents carried me away."

I grinned at him. "That's cute. You wanted to stare at the stars?"

He shook his head. "No I wanted to play with the raccoons."

"Oh."

"So where's Austin? Isn't he your partner?" Dez asked, and I sat up.

"He has to go mop the cafeteria. Where's Trish?" I asked looking around.

Dez shuddered. "Well I was ironing my pants and she told me that I better put them back on or else she'll knock the freckles off of my face, so I decided to go."

I stared at him. "Wait, you were ironing your pants in your underwear?"

"Uh, duh! I don't have any other pants to wear." Dez said like it was obvious.

"Wait, you only brought one pair of pants?" I asked and he nodded.

"Just these bad boys." He sighed. "Nice and toasty."

I couldn't help but laugh and lay back down. We were quiet for a second but then Dez spoke up.

"Ally, what do you think happens when someone dies?" he asked quietly and when I looked at him in shock he continued. "I lost a hamster recently." He sniffed and I gave him a sympathetic pat on the shoulder.

"I'm, uh, sorry for your loss." I said awkwardly. I looked back at the stars. "My mom used to say that when someone would die, their spirit would become one of the stars, so they could always look over their loved ones."

Dez nodded. "My hamster told me that we become the grass."

I stared at Dez. "I don't really know what to say to that Dez."

He shrugged. "So are you still close to your mom?"

I was about to answer when someone grabbed me and shook me. I screamed and jumped about a foot in the air…and right off of the dock.

The water was freezing cold, and chilled me to the bone. When I popped back out of the water Austin and Dez were doubled over with laughter.

"You jerk! You weasel! You talentless, jerky weasel!" I shouted at him and he stopped laughing.

"Dawson, come on. You weren't supposed to jump off the dock." He extended his arm to help me out, and I seriously considered pulling him in next to me. But I didn't. He lifted me up and I shivered from the chilly summer night weather.

"What is your problem Moon?" I asked viciously.

"Are you okay Ally?" Dez asked sounding concerned.

"You must be freezing –"

Austin stepped forward, but I put my hand on his chest to keep him at a distance.

"Don't come near me Blondie." I tried to sound menacing but the fact that my teeth were chattering ruined it.

"Ally!" I heard someone call and Dallas ran up the dock to us. "I heard you scream, and the splash. Are you okay?"

I turned bright red. How sweet was he? He actually cared that I could possibly get pneumonia or hypothermia or frostbite.

"Y-yeah. Just a l-l-l-little c-c-c-c –" I tried but I nearly bit off my tongue

"Come on let's get you inside." He said and shot Austin a nasty look.

Later on that night after Dallas had wrapped me in blankets, got me some soup from the kitchen, and kissed me on the cheek good night, Austin walked into the cabin like he hadn't done anything wrong.

I set my book down and stared at him in silent anger through my glasses. He turned around and grinned.

"Aw, don't you look adorable all wrapped up in blankets and your jammies." He teased and got some water from the sink in the other room. "I didn't know you wore glasses. They really compliment your eyes." He winked at me and took a sip of his water. I grabbed one of my books and threw it at him. He ducked under it easily.

"Oh come on Dawson. All I wanted to do was scare you." He said getting in his bed but then hanging upside down so he could look at me.

"I swear to God, Blondie. Whether its tomorrow or 3 years from now, I will get you back." I vowed and he sneered at me.  
"Please Dawson. You couldn't get me back if your life depended on it." He flipped back up and we fell asleep.

The next morning, I had tears streaming down my face as Nurse Christine gave me the bad news.

"What's going on here?" Austin asked walking in looking awkward and nervous with wide eyes while I went into a coughing fit. I grimaced in pain.

Nurse Christine gave me a pat on the hand and walked over to Austin.

"Ally has lost her voice." She told him and realization dawned upon his face.

He gave me a look. "Dawson that's pathetic. If you're gonna try and prank me, at least come up with something clever."

Nurse Christine gave Austin a sharp look. "Austin Moon, this is no joking matter! Ally's throat is so cut up that it has caused her voice to break, and it is now very painful for her to talk."

Austin's smile disappeared. "Wait, seriously?" Nurse Christine nodded and he ran his hands in his hair. "What happened?"

Nurse Christine sighed. "Well she caught the flu from being in cold weather after taking a dip in the lake. She was coughing so much that it caused grooves in her throat."

"That's…insane." Austin sighed looking panicked.

Nurse Christine nodded. "It's very serious. She'll need a very dangerous and complex surgery, and it's very unlikely that she'll ever sing again."

I began to cry again and Austin ran over to my side.

"Dawson, I am so sorry. This is all my fault." He said looking wretched. "Is there anything I can do?"

"Can you get me some water?" I squeaked my voice sounding weak and broken. Austin cringed at the sound of my voice and nodded.

"Of course!" he said and ran straight into the door. He fell backward and landed on his back. Dallas opened the door and dumped the mixture of cream of mushroom soup and sardines on him.

"HA!" I jumped out of bed and pointed at Austin.

"What the hell?!" Austin spit the mixture out of his mouth and sat up while all of us laughed at him.

Campers and counselors peeked in and began to laugh at Austin.

"I told you I would get you back you jerk!" I shouted.

Austin licked his lips and stood up while nodding. "Alright Dawson. This is war." He said and smirked at me. "But first, give me a hug." He said spreading his arms wide and began walking towards me.

"Blondie, no." I warned walking backward.

"Come here Dawson!" he exclaimed and ran after me.

I squealed loudly and took off out of the cabin and tore through the camp.

"Get away from me Blondie!" I screamed and nearly ran into Uncle Chip.

I froze and noticed Austin do the same next to me. Uncle Chip looked back and forth at us, and he opened his mouth as if he were about to say something but shook his head.

"I don't want to know." He said. "Keep it clean!" he shouted back at us.

Two nights later, almost everyone was asleep when I got out of the shower and screamed at the top of my lungs.

"What?! What happened?!" Trish shouted running in with Cassidy, but then they stopped and put their hands over their mouths in shock.

"Ally, what happened to your hair?" Cassidy asked her eyes as wide as saucers.

"Blondie." I growled and stormed to my cabin. "BLONDIE!" I shouted and Austin came running out of the room and when he saw me he doubled over in laughter.

"What did you do to my hair?!" I shouted at him and he sneered at me.

"Careful Dawson, if you continue being so mad, your face will be a red as your hair." He laughed.

I glared at him and looked at Trish. She sighed, walked forward, grabbed Austin by his collar and yanked him down to eye level.

"Listen Austin. You're a relatively cool guy, and although I don't have a problem with you, you dyed my best friend's hair and she can't pull off the ginger look." She said and Austin actually looked fearful. "So either you change it back or you'll be singing soprano in a mariachi band for the rest of your life because trust me; I can make it happen."

Austin pried her fingers off of his shirt. "Okay, okay. Everybody just calm down. The dye is wash-out dye. The next time you take a shower the dye will wash right out."

I glared at Austin. "Good. I'll get you back Moon. That is a promise." I snarled and turned to go take another shower.

"Hey Dawson!" Austin called and I turned around to look at him. "Love the towel." He said and winked.

My eyes widened and I looked down to realize that I was, in fact, in a towel.

* * *

"Really? That was your first impression of me?" Austin asked looking at me from the video camera.

I shrugged. "What was so wrong with what I said?" I asked.

It's been almost an entire week since Austin last pranked me. It's not that I had given up; I just had a hard time planning what I was going to do. But now, Austin and I were working on the project, and we were having a hard time because we kept contradicting everything the other would say, and people kept interrupting.

Austin gave me a look. "Dawson, you're supposed to tell the truth in these things. Be honest, did you really think that I was 'a really nice and talented person'?"

I grimaced. "No. I thought you were a womanizer jerk that was out to make my life hell. Is that what you wanted to hear?"

Austin shrugged. "Not exactly how I would've worded it, but sure!"

I rolled my eyes. "Fine! Let's just take a break."

Austin shrugged and got off of my bed. I grabbed one of my books and started reading when Austin slipped his shirt off.

I stared at him for a second with my mouth dropped open and then slapped my hand over my eyes. "What are you doing?!"

I could practically see him smirk at me. "What's wrong Dawson? Don't want me to notice you stare?"

"Get over yourself Pretty Boy." I spat and uncovered my eyes. "Just tell me why you have a sudden urge to start stripping?"

Austin rolled his eyes and pointed at the bar that was connected to the door frame.

"Every morning I do twenty pull ups. Usually I do it when you're sleeping because I don't have time to watch you check me out." He winked at me and I made a noise of discontentment. "I forgot to do it this morning, so I'm going to do it now."

I shuddered. "You don't have to worry about me checking you out." I promised.

I grabbed my book and started writing about Dallas. I couldn't help the goofy smile that plastered across my face when I thought about him.

When I was done I flexed my fingers and looked up. Almost immediately my eyes locked on Austin doing his pull-ups.

Whoa.

Even though the thought of doing anything with Austin made me sick to the stomach, I couldn't help but watch at how graceful he looked.

He made it look easy, and I didn't fail to notice how his muscles flexed every time he pulled himself up. Then I looked at his hands.

Now I had been to a gym before. Many times actually. And whenever someone would go and do pull-ups, their hands would move at every pull-up. Austin's hands didn't move.

That's when I got an idea.

The next morning, I got up really early. The sun was barely peeking out above Cootie Creek. I tiptoed silently out of bed and ran to the Crafts Cabin. I looked for the Quick-Dry Glue.

In my first crafts class, I had accidentally glued my hands to the bird house I was making with the Quick-Dry Glue. The glue had dried in just twenty seconds, and it took almost half an hour for the solvent to get my hands off of the birdhouse.

I ran back to my cabin and squeezed a massive amount of glue on the bar. Right when I was getting off of the stool, Austin's alarm clock started going off. I moved the stool silently and went back to bed.

"Dawson!" I was woken up by Austin shouting at me. "Dawson!"

I woke up and grinned at the sight of Austin hanging on the bar, his feet barely even grazing the floor.

"Why good morning Blondie." I stretched. "Isn't today just a beautiful day?"

He glared at me. "Dawson, what did you do?"

I shrugged. "Just glued your hands to the bar, so I could do this." I grinned evilly and pulled his pants down to reveal is bright pink boxers. I began to laugh hysterically.

He closed his eyes. "Listen, I know you can't keep your hands off of me, but really? All this because I dyed your hair?!"

I scoffed. "Trust me. I can keep my hands off of you." I said and held up a fistful of my hair. "And yes! All this because you dyed my hair! My hair still had a red-ish tint to it!"

Austin glared at me. "Oh just you wait Dawson." He threatened and I grinned at him. "Just get me down from here."

I shook my head with an innocent look on my face. "I can't. I'm going on my daily jog right now, but hey, here's the solvent."

I grabbed the solvent from behind my pillow and set it a good two feet away from him.

I laughed evilly and stepped outside only to see the ground littered with white paper. I looked around as people began to pick up the pieces of paper. I picked up the one I had stepped on and read it.

'_From the Diary of Ally Dawson' _was the first line. My breath caught and I looked back at Austin who was trying to reach the solvent with his foot.

_I can't stop thinking about Dallas. Whenever I'm around him, my heart beats like a million miles a minute and I honestly think that I might be in love with him. I haven't felt like this about a boy since Ross Centineo – my boyfriend in the seventh grade. _

I had angry and embarrassed tears in my eyes as I ran back into the cabin and kicked the solvent away from Austin's foot, which had almost reached it.

"Damn it Dawson!" Austin huffed and then looked at me. "I almost had it."

I crumpled the piece of paper and threw it at him.

"You stole my book! How could you?!" I cried at him and he looked bewildered.

"It isn't that big of a deal! Why are you crying?!" he exclaimed.

I glared at him. "Nobody was ever meant to see that! What is Dallas going to – oh my God, Dallas!" I shrieked and ran out of the cabin.

Several people had pieces of paper and were laughing. I began picking up all the pieces of paper and snatching them back from the people who were holding on to it.

* * *

Uncle Chip stared at us silently. "So obviously this little prank war boiled over."

I buried my head into my hands. "I have never been so humiliated in my life!" I cried but I was muffled.

I could feel Austin staring at me. "You glued my hands to a bar, and yanked my pants down!"

I glared at him. "No one saw you! They were all too busy reading and making fun of my inner thoughts and feelings!"

"The solvent turned my hands pink!" he shouted back showing me his hands that were in fact pink. I forgot about that little detail.

"Shut up!" Uncle Chip exclaimed and we stopped bickering. "Austin that was a total invasion of privacy! Ally, that was totally uncalled for!"

Austin and I stared at the ground feeling ashamed.

"So Ally, you started this prank war. May I ask why?" Uncle Chip asked sounding amused.

"First of all, I didn't start it. Blondie did when he pushed me into the lake." I said and Uncle Chip turned to Austin who was shaking his head.

"Not true! I just wanted to scare her a little! It's not my fault she fell off of the dock!" he defended.

Uncle Chip shook his head. "I am so not prepared for this." He muttered. "Alrighty then. Ally, why did you retaliate?"

I shrugged. "I was really mad. Not just that I 'fell' off of the dock, but that Blondie didn't even care to apologize."

Austin grimaced. "Yeah, I guess I should probably apologize for that." He muttered and scratched the back of his neck. "Seriously Dawson, I'm really sorry that I caused you to fall off of the dock. I just wanted to scare you a little."

I shrugged and didn't look at him.

Uncle Chip nodded looking proud and satisfied. "Okay Austin. Why did you retaliate?"

I snorted. "That's easy! He's so self obsessed that he _always_ has to have the last word…or action."

"You don't know what you're talking about Dawson!" Austin argued back.

"What happened?!" Uncle Chip asked looking exasperated. "Two week ago it looked like you guys were going to finally get along!"

I shook my head. "I don't think we could ever get along." I said.

We were silent when Austin spoke up. "I was angry. I didn't care that she pranked me; I actually thought it was pretty cool." I looked at him in confusion. "I was mad at her because she called me talentless."

I shook my head. "What are you talking about? I didn't call you talentless."

Austin nodded. "Yes you did. You called me a talentless, jerky weasel."

I bit my lip. "Oh yeah. Blondie, why does it matter what I think?"

Austin shook his head. "Dawson, I always take peoples' criticism to heart. It just sucks that you think that way."

I shook my head immediately. "But, I don't think that way. I just said that because I was mad. You're honestly one of the most talented people I know."

Uncle Chip clapped happily. "Alright. So we've apologized, can we put this whole thing to rest?"

I nodded. "I guess. Just sucks that Dallas is probably going to be all weird around me now."

"Yeah, sorry about that. I didn't think it would be such a big deal." Austin apologized and I shrugged.

Just then Cassidy came running in with a huge stack of paper.

"Don't worry Ally, I got all of the papers and Trish threatened to burn the camp to the ground if anyone told Dallas anything." Cassidy huffed throwing all the paper into the recycling bin.

"What?!" Uncle Chip exclaimed and Cassidy shook her head.

"Relax Uncle Chip. She won't actually burn it to the ground…I think." Cassidy turned to me. "We're just lucky that Dallas is a very heavy sleeper."

She smiled at all of us and left.

"Alright, so that's another problem taken care of." Uncle Chip smiled. "How is your guys' project going?"

Austin and I shared an uneasy glance. "Not so well. Every time we try to film something someone interrupts." I explained.

Uncle Chip nodded. "Alright well here. Take one of the boats and row out to Cootie Creek. No one will bug you there."

Austin and I shared another uneasy glance. "I don't know. Is Cootie Creek really safe?"

Uncle Chip rolled his eyes. "Would I send you guys out there if it wasn't?"

* * *

_Camp Days: 2 Weeks and 4 Days_

* * *

**Review!**

**Oh and Fun Fact # 1: Ally's 7th grade boyfriend 'Ross Centineo' was created from Ross Lynch (actor for Austin) and Noah Centineo (actor for Dallas).  
**


	4. Chapter 4: Cootie Creek

**Unfortunately, I wanted to get this chapter out quick, so it's a little short.**

**I also don't own Austin & Ally.  
**

* * *

**Chapter 4.**

Ally POV  
"Do you need help with that?" I asked nervously as Austin hoisted the huge canoe over his shoulder.

"No I got it." Austin smiled but I still watched him nervously.

We were quiet as he rowed us.

"I'm really sorry about your book." He said suddenly and I shrugged.

"Dallas didn't really see it, so we're fine." I said and sighed. "Pink's a really good color on you."

Austin tried to look annoyed but he cracked a smile. "Thanks."

It was unbelievable that Austin and I were actually getting along so well. He rowed us out into the middle of the creek and stopped.

"Why did you stop?" I asked looking around and he rubbed his arms.

"It's not really easy to row a boat you know." He grumbled and I rolled my eyes.

Well there goes our streak.

"Alright. Do you want to go first?" I asked holding up the camera and to my surprise he shook his head.

"Nah. You go first." He grabbed the camera and pointed it at me. "Alright. Um, what is something that you haven't told anyone? Not even Trish." He added.

I stared at him. "Then...what's even the point in me telling you if this is going to be filmed and shown to the entire camp?"

Austin gave me a look. "It's to show that you trust me."

I shook my head and hugged my knees to my chest. "No way. No. Not happening."

Austin stared at me for a little while and then handed me the camera. "What are you doing?" I asked him.

"I'll go first." He said and looked at me instead of the camera. "I'm dyslexic."

I stared at him with furrowed eyebrows. "Wait, what?"

He shrugged. "When we were life guarding and I mixed up left and right. It's not because I just didn't know or I just forgot. I'm dyslexic. It got jumbled up in my head and I got confused."

I stared at him for a little bit and I closed the camera. "Blondie, I'm so sorry. I must've sounded like a total jerk."

He shrugged. "You didn't know."

We were silent for a little while and I finally handed him the camera back. I saw him open it and point it at me.

I opened my mouth and closed it repeatedly. I didn't know where to start.

"My mom died." I said finally while staring at the water move gently.

"Huh?" Austin asked and I hugged my knees to my chest tighter.

"In the fifth grade there was this really bad Earthquake and my dad put me under the table. He was going to get my mom because she had fallen on the floor. But he didn't even get out of the table when a piece of the ceiling dropped down and hit my mom in the head. She was killed instantly."

"Ally...I don't know what to say." Austin said and I didn't fail to notice that he called me 'Ally' instead of 'Dawson'.

I wanted to stop talking but it was like word vomit. "My dad didn't know how to cope. I looked and acted exactly like her. It was easy at first because I was always at school, but when school ended he panicked and sent me here so I wouldn't be a constant reminder of what he lost. Things are so much better now, but it still hurts."

I heard Austin set the camera down and he was next to me suddenly. He sat there awkwardly and I stared at him in confusion. And then slowly – very slow – he had his arms wrapped around me. It was weird to be with him this way considering we were at each other's throats just a few moments ago.

But it was still strangely comforting.

I sat there awkwardly still trying to think of what to do, but then I turned and hugged Austin. It was so comforting, and even though my mom had died such a long time ago, I really needed to be comforted like this.

"If I had known it was something like that, I never would have asked." He said with his chin resting on top of my head. We were silent for the longest time, just sitting there hugging."You know what will cheer you up?"

I pulled away to look at him. "What?"

"A swim."

Before I could even blink, he jerked to the side making our small boat tip over and I felt something struck my head with such a force that I almost blacked out. When I resurfaced Austin was laughing.

"Austin!" I tried to sound angry, but I couldn't stop laughing. We began to get in a splash fight when I remembered the camera. "Austin the camera!"

When I looked at him he was grinning. "What are you smirking at?! We just lost our entire project!"

He shook his head. "Water proof camera. And you just called me Austin."

I glared at the boy teasingly. "You suck!" I said dunking him under water and when he popped up again he was about to dunk me, but something stopped him.

"Dawson...you're bleeding." He swam over to me and examined my head. I didn't fail to notice that we were really close. As in so close that I could actually see the more refined features of his face. I couldn't explain it but whatever it was, it left me breathless. "Come on. We better get back to camp. Hopefully you don't have a concussion."

He fixed the boat, got in, and helped me in. After grabbing the camera we were on our way back. And I didn't want to. Out in the creek, Austin and I were friends. We had fun and I didn't want that to end.

He helped me into the nurse's office and to our surprise, Dallas was there.

"Ally?" He ran forward and helped me over to a bed. "You're bleeding...and wet. What happened?"

Austin stood back but answered anyway. "We were sent out to Cootie Creek and I, um, tilted the boat over. She must've hit her head on the paddle or boat or something."

"What are you doing here Dallas?" I asked while Dallas examined the cut on my head. He was so close to me; almost closer than Austin had been in the creek. Dallas looked into my eyes and smiled. Wow.

I heard Austin clear his throat uncomfortably and we snapped out of our little bubble.

"I switched jobs. I help Nurse Christine with some of the patients." He said and got a band aid and a wet wash cloth. He dabbed at my forehead gently and I swear he was so close I could've just leaned over 2 inches and kiss him. "I'm not hurting you, am I?"

I smiled. "You could never hurt me Dallas." I heard Austin snort from his little corner but it barely registered. I couldn't see or hear anything but Dallas.  
Dallas leaned in a little closer and my breathing sped up.

"I'm just going to, um, step out." Austin said distantly and I felt Dallas press his lips to mine. "Give you guys your privacy." Austin muttered awkwardly and I heard him leave.

I couldn't move. I couldn't think. Dallas was kissing me. Dallas was kissing me! Oh my God! Was I doing well? Was I kissing right? It's been so long since I last kissed a boy that I couldn't even remember what to do!

But then suddenly Dallas had my face in his hands and he was looking into my eyes.

"I think you're fine Ally. I don't see any signs of a concussion." He said and when he let me go I saw Nurse Christine and Cassidy standing in the doorway. Oh. Dallas was being gentlemanly. He didn't want to kiss me in front of my friend and his boss.

I smiled. "Awesome. Thanks Dallas."

He nodded and put the band aid on my forehead. "Here." He wrapped a towel around me, and handed me another. "We don't need you and Austin getting a cold."

I nodded and he walked me out. Cassidy shot me a wink and Nurse Christine was completely oblivious.

"Feel better Ally." Dallas said and – feeling bold – I gave him a peck on the lips.

"Already do." I said shyly, and ran to catch up with Austin. "Here you go."

Austin rolled his eyes at me. "Someone looks like they enjoyed themselves."

I couldn't help but grin when I gave him a shove. "Shut up Blond –" I sneezed violently.

Austin looked at me with wide eyes. "Are you okay Dawson?"

"I'm fine, I just –" I sneezed again, but this time it was followed by several coughs.

Austin looked nervous. "Okay, we need to get you out of the cold."

* * *

A few minutes later Austin had me in a very warm bath filled with bubbles. I sneezed again and began to cough violently.

There was a knock at the door and Austin came walking in whistling.

"Blondie!" I squealed and tried to sink lower in the water.

Austin spun around with his eyes shut. "Right. Bath equals nakedness. Sorry, I forgot."

I rolled my eyes. "Sure, you forgot."

Even though he was facing away from me I could tell he was smiling.

"I was just bringing you your clothes." He said.

After getting out and putting my clothes on, I walked out and glared at Austin.

"Did you enjoy your little snoop?" I asked and he shot me a wink.

"I actually found this very amazing red dress." He said. "Why don't you ever wear that around me?"

I rolled my eyes again. "Next time, let Cassidy get my clothes. I don't like you searching through my bras and underwear - ?" I sneezed again and Austin groaned.

"I thought we got rid of it." He whined and I started my coughing fit again. The camp began to spin and I stumbled with it.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." Austin ran over and grabbed me. I held onto his shoulder for support.

"Austin, what's going on?" I mumbled feeling very tired.

He picked me up bridal style and I heard the familiar crunch of gravel underneath feet. "I don't know Als."

"Don't call me Als." I commanded sleepily. "Only my friends call me that."

He was silent and I felt a difference in air and the lighting changed. We were in the cabin now. "Aren't we friends?" he asked and I shrugged. He slid me into my bed and tucked me under the covers.

"Don't know. I'm sleepy Austin." I muttered.

"Hey, hey, hey!" Austin said and I felt him shake me. I opened my eyes. Maybe it was just my sickness warping his image, but Austin looked strangely beautiful. "None of that. You might have a concussion and I am not letting you slip into a coma. I won't let that rest on my conscious."

I shook my head lazily. "But Dallas –" I sneezed and coughed again. "– said I didn't have a concussion." I coughed out the last syllables.

"Yeah well I think Dr. Dallas might've had a bad case of the Ally's Lips Jitters. So excuse me if I don't trust his judgment." Austin said.

I closed my eyes. "I just want to close my eyes for a little bit."

"Ally, stop that!" I felt Austin smack my cheeks lightly, making my eyes snap open in anger.

"Hey!" I protested and swatted his hands away. "Stop that." I sneezed again and this time I fell into a very welcomed sleep.

Austin POV

"Ally? Ally!" I shook her but she was already asleep. "Oh no. Oh no, oh no, oh no." I panicked.

"Uncle Chip!" I shouted and took off towards his office. "Uncle Chip!" I screamed and he came running out of his office looking completely panicked.

"What? What happened?" he asked.

"Ally – she got hit by a paddle. Might have – concussion. Fell asleep." I puffed.

After getting Nurse Christine, we all ran back to my cabin to see Ally still sleeping, looking pale as a ghost with a thin sheet of sweat covering her.

I began to pace as Nurse Christine and Uncle Chip looked her over.

"Austin, you need to relax." Uncle Chip said holding a glass of water. "You're stressing me out."

I shook my head. "Sorry."

Uncle Chip gave me a sympathetic pat on the back, and – totally shocking me to the very core – he threw the water on Ally. She gasped dramatically and sat up, coughing and sputtering. I let out a sigh of relief.

After a short talk with Nurse Christine, we found out she was okay. She just had a cold and apparently hadn't been sleeping all too well because she feared I would prank her while she slept. I couldn't help but feel bad.

"How did she get sick though?" Uncle Chip asked.

"Well, it's not just any cold." My muscles locked at Nurse Christine's words. "It's the Common Cootie Creek Cold."

I relaxed and scratched the back of my neck. "Oh yeah. We kind of…fell out of the boat." I admitted and Uncle Chip gave me a wide eyed stare.

"You fell out of the boat?!" he exclaimed.

I grimaced. "Well, no. I sort of…threw us out."

"Are you kidding me Austin?! Why do you think we call it Cootie Creek?" he slapped me upside the head.

"Ow!" I squeaked and rubbed the back of my head. "But why did Dawson get sick, and I didn't?"

Nurse Christine shrugged. "Maybe you have a stronger immune system?"

Ally made an annoyed sound from the bed and we all turned to here.

"That's not right." She growled angrily. Good to know she was back to normal. "I pride myself on having a top notch immune system."

"Well did you accidentally drink any of the water?" Uncle Chip asked and I shook my head.

"Creek water is nasty. I learned that at a very early age." I shuddered remembering when my dad took me fishing and I fell in, unintentionally taking in big gulps of lake water. I was only four and I will forever remember that moment.

"I didn't either." Ally coughed and we all gave her a look. "Well…maybe a little."

"Don't worry Ally. The Common Cootie Creek Cold only lasts 24 hours." Uncle Chip ruffled her hair and left with Nurse Christine. I could've sworn they grabbed each other's hands when they thought we couldn't see them

Ally pouted. "But that means I'm going to miss the festival!" she shouted after them.

Oh yeah. That was tonight. Every night we always had a Jam Along Festival. Next to the Summer Fling Dance, it was probably the best part of camp. There was food, music, dancing, singing, s'mores – it was the ultimate bon fire.

"I'm sorry Dawson. This is all my fault." I apologized and she sighed.

"It's fine. Go have fun. It's probably starting right now." She said.

I shook my head. "I don't want to leave you like this."

She rolled her eyes. "I'll be fine. I'm just gonna sleep anyway." I nodded and began to walk out hesitantly. "Hey Blondie!"

I turned around and Ally was grinning. "I was supposed to wear that red dress tonight."

I snapped my fingers in mock disappointment. "Dang. Maybe next time."

She nodded smiling. "Maybe next time."

* * *

_Camp Days: 2 Weeks and 4 Days_

* * *

**So review please. What's your favorite part/line? Least favorite part/line? **

**Fun Fact # 2: The decision to make Austin dyslexic was a random thought. I never thought of making him dyslexic until I realized that he mixed up the cabin numbers and didn't know his right from the left. **

**Fun Fact # 3: This chapter was almost completely written on my kindle.  
**


	5. Chapter 5: Common Cootie Creek Cold

**I don't own Austin & Ally or any songs mentioned in this story.**

* * *

**Chapter 5.  
**

Ally POV

I stared up at the bottom of Austin's bed with the music from the festival thumping throughout my cabin. That was probably the downfall of having one of the closest cabins to the performing area.

I think Austin had just finished one of his songs. He always performed at those types of occasions, and he was so cocky about it. It was annoying.

I had been sitting in bed staring at the bottom of Austin's bed for a good 2 hours. Trish and Cassidy had stopped by, offering to stay with me. But I could tell that they really wanted to go, so I lied to them and told them that I was really tired and wanted to sleep.

So far the highlight of my night was actually being able to make it to the sink before I completely puked. Pathetic, I know.

But then, Austin walked in with a bowl.

"Blondie, what are you doing here?" I asked, sitting up.

He shook his head. "The festival isn't the same without you."

I snorted and shook my head. "How would you know? You were always on the stage performing while I hid under the refreshments table."

Austin rolled his eyes and sat at my feet. "Can't you just let me be sweet? Just once?"

"Sorry Blondie." He made a face.

"Please stop calling me that." He practically begged and I raised my eyebrows.

"But…I've been calling you that ever since we've met." I said tilting my head to the side.

Austin grimaced. "I've actually always hated it whenever you called me that."

"Ha ha. Sorry." I laughed. "Truth be told, I hated it when you called me Dawson."

Austin smiled. "Fine. I'll try to call you Ally is you swear to call me Austin.

"Fine, you got a deal Blon – I mean, Austin." I said and he smiled at me. And when he smiled at me, I felt something.

It was breathtaking…and nauseating. I slapped my hand over my mouth rolled out of bed and ran to the other room with the sink in the room.

Austin knocked on the door. "Ally, are you okay?!"

I gagged as I washed my mouth out. "I'm fine." I choked out as I tried to hold my hair back and wash the sweat off of my face. But I didn't even make it to the door before I started puking my guts out again.

"Ally, I'm coming in!" he barged through the door before I could even moan my protest. "Aw jeez."

He ran over to me and held my hair back while I gagged and nothing came out. How sweet of him…and a little weird.

He helped me back to bed and actually lay down with me.

"You're not going to throw up again are you?" he asked warily and I smiled.

"No. Actually, I feel better. Like, a lot better." I grinned and my stomach growled.

Austin had a slight laugh to his voice when he replied. "And apparently, you're hungry too."

I smiled sheepishly. "Yeah; I haven't had much to eat today."

"Good. I brought you a little somethin', somethin'." He reached around me and grabbed the bowl. "I figured you would be hungry so I brought some chicken noodle soup."

I smiled at him. "Thanks Austin, that's really sweet." I scooped a noodle up and popped it in my mouth. "So why did you ditch?"

He shrugged and was quiet for a minute. "Ally, we've known each other for five years."

I nodded and sucked another noodle into my mouth. "I'm aware."

"I don't even know what your favorite color is." He said slowly and propped himself up on his elbow. "How sad is that?"

I shrugged. "Well we haven't exactly been friends."

Austin looked down at his eyes. "Are we now? Out on the lake…well it didn't seem like you found my presence revolting." He looked so vulnerable. I liked this about him. But then he ruined it by smirking. "In fact, I would go as far as to say that you actually wanted to kiss me."

I rolled my eyes. "Okay, one; no." I said and he laughed. "And two; it might be a nice change to not want to kill you all the time."

He flipped his hair out of his eyes. "Well, I refuse to make any promises regarding making it easier on you."

I laughed. "So you just – what? You wanted to get to know me better?"

He nodded. "I don't know your favorite color, or your favorite food, or –"

"Ick!" I spit the soup back into the bowl along with a piece of chicken.

"Are you okay? Are you going to hurl?" he asked scooting away from me and I made a face.

"No, I just – is this the camp's chicken?" I asked pointing at the soup. He nodded with wide eyes and I smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, I just…I don't like the camp's chicken."

"Ohh." Austin nodded as I fished all the chicken bits pout of the soup. "See, I'm learning stuff about you! Where I'm chill and will eat anything even if it's revolting, you will immediately projectile." He teased and I stuck my tongue out at him.

"Don't tempt me Dawson." He teased and I gave him a look. "I mean Ally. Sorry."

We were quiet for a moment when I spoke up finally. "You know, I've told you more personal stuff than I've told Trish?"

Austin smiled at me. "I guess that makes me your best friend."

I gave him a look. "Friend."

He grabbed the camera. "We'll talk about it later."

"Austin, no!" I put my hand over the camera. "Austin, I'm sick!"

"Come on Ally, our getting along will be great footage!" he exclaimed and I shook my head.

"Austin, stop!" I whined covering my face with the pillow. "Austin, I don t want the camp to see me like this."

"Ally, you look fine." He said and when I uncovered my face he had the camera pointed straight at me.  
"Austin!" I whined covering my face with my hands.

He sighed and put it on the table by my bed. "I won't put it in our presentation."

I looked at him like he was insane. "Then what's the point in filming it?!"

He shook his head. "So we can look back at it in laugh. Be honest Ally, do you really think that in a year from now we'll actually remember this?"

_Yes. _I thought. I would never forget the moment that Austin and I buried the 5 year old hatchet, but he looked like he really wanted to film us. "You promise you won't put any of this in the presentation?" I asked and he nodded. "Fine."

He made me sit up against the wall while we asked each other questions.

He looked at me finally. "You always have those pieces of paper with you. What is all that junk?"

I rolled my eyes. "It's not junk, Austin. It's extra credit."

His eyebrows furrowed. "Ally, you're a straight A student. What do you need extra credit for?"

I grimaced and sighed. "I need to get into a good college far away from Miami. This extra credit will help me with a couple of scholarship programs."

"Why do you want to leave Miami so bad?" he asked and I was quiet for a minute.

"I love my dad. And we've been getting along so much better, don't get me wrong." I assured Austin and he nodded looking understanding. "But Miami is just a constant reminder of my mom. I see her everywhere. When I go off to the bus stop, she's there waving goodbye. When I go into my dad's music shop, she's there playing the piano. I go to the beach and she's walking along the boardwalk eating ice cream."

Austin gave my hand a pat, he opened his mouth and I expected something comforting. "That sucks." He said simply and I shrugged.

"Okay, my turn." I said and he nodded his head. "I don't open up to a lot of people, and I know we're only friends –"

"Best friends." He interjected and I rolled my eyes.

"Friends."

"We'll talk about it later." He said. "Go on."

"As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted," I nudged him teasingly and he laughed. "I know we're only friends, but I get hurt by guys that I trust a lot. So is there anything that I need to know before I completely trust you?"

"Anything bad?" he asked while gnawing on his bottom lip and I nodded warily. "Um, I don't write my own songs." He blurted out and I tilted my head to the side.

"Not really what I was going for, but okay." I nodded. "Besides, I never thought you did."

His eyebrows rose. "But – but how?" he asked, and I smiled.

"I heard your poem about pancakes last year." I said and he smiled sheepishly. "Okay, so it's my turn again."

"What?!" Austin objected and I smirked at him.

"You already asked me a question." I reminded him and he scoffed.

"Whatever. Fine, I'll give that one to you." He said and I looked out the window.

I looked back at Austin smiling. "Can we go outside?"

Austin looked at me and then away uneasily. "Ally, you're really sick. I don't know if you should be going outside."

I pouted. "Please Austin?! Just for a little while! I'm already starting to feel better." I promised and he sighed.

"Just for a little while?" he asked and I nodded enthusiastically. "Fine, let's go. But you better tell me if you start to feel worse."

I nodded. "Scout's honor."

We made our way outside and, to my disappointment, away from the festival. We lay down on the dock like Dez and I did that one time and stared up at the stars. He set the camera to the side so it pointed at us.

"Why did you tell me about your dyslexia?" I asked him suddenly. "We haven't even been friends for an hour, and you've practically bared your soul to me. Why?"

He shrugged. "I trust you Ally."

"But, why? How do you know that I'm not about to go off and tell Trish and Cassidy about your dyslexia?" I challenged and he grinned at me.

"You're a good person Ally. Even if you wanted to, even if you wanted to hurt me, you wouldn't." he winked at me and I thought about that. It's true.

"How is it that you know more about me than I do?" I asked and he shook his head.

"Nope. You already asked you question." He said and I huffed.

"Fine. What is your question, oh wise one?" I teased and he laughed, but then was quiet. I stared at him waiting for his question.

"Which star do you think your mom is?" he asked and I gave him a puzzled look. "I overheard you talking with Dez."

I shrugged and stared up at the stars. "I don't know. But I hope she's a proud star."

Austin turned his head so he was looking into my eyes. "I know she is." He whispered and turned back to the stars. He pointed to one. "I think she's that one. It's so bright and beautiful."

I looked at the one Austin was describing and I shook my head. "Yeah, that's not her."

"How do you know?" he challenged and I giggled.

"Because it's one of the planets." I giggled and Austin frowned.

"Oh." We were quiet and it was becoming painfully awkward and I began to scramble for anything to break the silence.

"I can't dance." I blurted out and Austin looked at me in amusement.

"What?" he laughed and I turned red.

"No seriously, I'm a horrible dancer." I laughed and next thing I knew we were rolling around on the dock in laughter.

* * *

"Hey Ally. How are you feeling?" Uncle Chip asked peeking into my cabin.

I peeked at Austin who was actually reading one of my books. "Feeling good. Slept the entire night."

Austin mashed his lips together in an attempt to stay silent, but he was shaking with laughter.

Uncle Chip smiled. "Well then, that's good." He said and handed me a piece of paper. "Here's the information for the Summer Fling Dance."

I smiled in thanks and read the piece of paper. Of course it was beautifully designed and the words were curly and bold. Apparently the Summer Fling Dance would be a week early this year because the camp was going to end a week earlier as well.

Camp always ended two weeks before school started, but this year it would be ending with three weeks before school started. Anyway, the dance was coming up in 2 weeks, and apparently every counselor had to participate somehow. Signups for certain spots would be in 8 days.

I couldn't help but feel so bad for Uncle Chip. There was so much to do in such a short amount of time.

I walked over to the board that was next to the bunk bed and pinned the flyer on it.

"So what are you going to do for the dance?" Austin asked and I shrugged. "Are you going to perform?"

I froze and immediately shook my head. "Definitely not." I lay down and Austin flipped upside down. "I thought you said you weren't going to do that a lot." I whined and he grinned at me.

"Actually, I never answered you." He pointed out and I rolled my eyes. "Why aren't you going to perform?"

I gnawed on my lip. "I have stage anxiety." I admitted finally, and he rolled off of his bed and landed on the ground on his feet and got in bed next to me.

"You have stage fright?" he asked and I nodded. "A lot of people do, but they get over it."

I shook my head. "But mine is really bad. Like really, really bad. I start hyperventilating, and sweating. My knees start to shake, and I cry."

Austin's eyes were wide. "Jeez. Do you know why you're like that?" he asked and I nodded grudgingly but I didn't say anything. "Sorry, you don't have to tell me." He apologized and I shook my head.

"No, it's fine." I said. "When I was little, I would get stage fright whenever I would perform. Not as bad as now, but it was still enough for me to hide in the supply closet at my school."

Austin smiled and waited patiently for me to continue.

"Anyway, my mom would find me, and hold me. She would tell me that I was being silly, and when I would refuse to go out on stage, she would sing this song she made up." I smiled faintly remembering her beautiful voice. "Here we go, come with me. There's a world out there that we should see. Take my hand, and close your eyes. With you right here, I'm a rocketeer."

Austin gave me a strange look and I shrugged. "It's a rocket enthusiast." I explained. "Anyway, the song would calm me down, and I would go out on stage. And I knew that no matter what happened, my mom would be proud of me. But when my mom died, my dad tried to send me to a school for musically talented kids that was all the way in Los Angeles. I had to perform for the headmaster of the school."

I grimaced and I was pretty sure Austin knew where this was going.

"There was too much pressure. There was pressure from my dad, pressure from the headmaster, and the pressure to make my mom proud. It sounds a little silly, but since I didn't hear the song, I didn't know if she would be proud even if I screwed up. I panicked and needless to say, I didn't get into the school."

Austin let out a big breath. "Wow. So technically, you don't have stage fright." He said and I gave him a funny look. "You're afraid of disappointing your mom."

I bit the inside of my cheek. "That too."

Austin shook his head and sat up slightly, steadying himself on his elbows. "Ally that's silly; your songs are amazing."

I smiled. "Thanks Austin, but –" I stopped and narrowed my eyes. "Austin, how do you know that I write songs?"

His eyes widened. "Huh?"

"Austin." I gave him a sharp look and he grimaced.

"Well, I may have read a couple songs in your book when I made all those copies of you proclaiming your love for Dallas…" he scratched the back of his neck and I took this as a chance to roll over and bump him off of the bed.

He landed face down on the carpet while I laughed evilly at him. He looked up at me.

"You are a child." He teased and I smiled so thankful that we were friends now.

* * *

_Camp Days: 2 Weeks and 5 Days_

* * *

**So review. Your favorite part/line and your least favorite part/line. This song is originally Rocketeer by Far East Movement.  
**

**Fun Fact # 4: The song Rocketeer by Far East Movement was chosen by playing shuffle on my iPod. It was the first song that was played.  
**


	6. Chapter 6: Dallas the Heartbreaker

**I do not own Austin & Ally.  
**

* * *

**Chapter 6**

Ally POV

I sat in bed with a stack of papers while Austin did his daily pull-ups. He's still scarred from the prank I pulled and now he always runs his hand along the bar before doing anything.

"So you excited for the Summer Fling Dance?" He teased before starting his pushups.

I grabbed Austin's laptop and dragged one of the videos into my presentation.

Austin and I decided to make two different videos for the presentation; mine about him, and then his about me.

I looked up at Austin briefly and shrugged. "As excited as a loner can be, I guess."

I heard 'oof' and when I looked up at Austin he was on his stomach looking pained.

"Uh, are you okay?" I asked not sure if I should get out of bed and check for internal bleeding.

He shook his head. "I'm fine. My hand just slipped." He shrugged and sat on the floor like a little kid. "And what do you mean 'loner'? Aren't you going to ask Dallas?"

I laughed. "Yeah, right."

Austin got in my bed and put my feet in his lap. After 5 years of disliking each other, it was still weird to be like this with him, but oddly natural. "No I'm serious.

After all, you guys did share that little tonsil hockey moment awhile back." He shuddered.

I gave him a little kick to which he responded with a playful punch to the foot. "It was not tonsil hockey. It was more...innocent than that."

Austin snorted. "There was nothing innocent about that tongue bath I witnessed."

My nose scrunched and I gave him another kick. "You're revolting." I grossed and he smiled.

"But still your best friend." He reminded and I shook my head.

"Friend." I corrected and he shrugged.

"We'll talk about it later." He said and I stuck my tongue out at him. "Don't tempt me Dawson."

I whined. "You said you'd stop calling me that."

He smiled sheepishly. "Sorry. Old habits die hard."

I shook my head and looked back at my work...only to turn my attention back to Austin.

"I thought about asking him but -" I bit my lip and Austin gave me a little pout.

"Aw come on Ally. You can trust me." He nudged my foot playfully.

"I can't dance." I said shyly and he stared at me.

"I know you can't but what does that have to do with anything?" He asked and I shook my head.

"No I mean, I can't dance." I said seriously and Austin frowned. "What if Dallas asks me to dance?"

Austin smiled and got up. "I can teach you! I'm a great dancer!"

"And apparently very modest."

Austin shook his head. "Come on." He grabbed my hand and yanked me out of bed. "Alright, show me your best move."

I sighed and shrugged. "Fine, but don't laugh at me." He nodded.

He started some music and I nodded my head to the beat. And then I started waving my hands in the air and jumping around.

"Alright, alright, alright." Austin interrupted and grabbed my shoulders to make me stop. "First lesson, never do that unless you're in the comfort of a windowless room." He said with a small chuckle to his voice.

Over the span of the entire day, Austin became my official-not-so-official dance teacher.

"Okay Ally, where do you think is the best place to dance?" He asked and I smiled. I knew this one!

"You're supposed to stay as far away as possible from the center. That way you don't have to push through people or get danced all over." I smiled feeling satisfied. Austin shook his head.

"Wrong. It's better to stay close to the middle. That way no one will notice if you dance badly." He explained.

"Oh." I bit my lip. "Okay now show me some moves!"

Austin laughed but complied. "Alright. Here, this is my favorite move." He jumped in the air, twisted his legs oddly, landed on his feet only to quickly drop to his knees, and pop back up.

I stared at him. "Okay so I guess when Dallas asks me to dance I'll just scream and run away."

Austin laughed and shook his head. "Alright I guess you can't exactly do that but I do know something you can do."

I shook my head. "I can't do the worm either Austin."

He shook his head while laughing. "No no. It's easy." He played the music again and nodded his head to the beaten then he began to rock, bounce, and sway to the beat while nodding his head to the beat.

"That's it?" I asked and he nodded.

"Come here." He gestured and I walked over to him hesitantly. I looked over at the door nervously. Ever since we started these little sessions, we always kept the door closed and the windows shut.

"Okay, turn around and lift your hands up slightly." He instructed and I did as he said.

"Okay." I said nervously. We were pressed so tightly together that I could feel his heart hammering in his chest. "Austin I don't care what the lesson is, I refuse to grind with you."

A laugh ripped through Austin's body and I could feel it rumble. It made me smile slightly…weird.

"We're not going to grind I promise." He laughed and weaved his fingers through mine and placed our hands around me and he guided me to the beat.

"Hey Ally, guess what?"

"What?" I asked.

"You're dancing." He whispered in my ear and I smiled and we parted finally.

"Thank you so much Austin." I smiled. "But, um...how do I slow dance? I mean, I'm absolutely horrible at that little waltz thing."

Austin laughed again. "Don't worry Ally. If I know Dallas - and I'm pretty sure I do - he's not going to waltz."

"What's he going to do then?" I asked.

Austin bit his lip in thought and then walked over to the music and changed the song to Away From the Sun by 3 Doors Down.

He grabbed my hand and led me to the center of the room. "Okay, so believe it or not, but I'm not exactly good at this type of sloppy dancing. So stick with me." He warned and I giggled. "Okay put your arms around my neck - if you can reach, Shorty." He teased and I slapped him lightly on the shoulder.

"Okay, like this?" I asked and he nodded.

"Yeah." He said and put his hands on my hips. We started shuffling and swaying to the music in silence. "And if it gets a little awkward just staring into his eyes then you might want to put your head on his chest."

I nodded and did as he said. I could hear his heart and it was beating so fast.

"Your heart is really fast." I murmured and he cleared his throat, stepping away from me.

"Nice job." He smiled. "I think you got it."

I smiled back at him. "Thanks so much Austin."

He shrugged. "It was nothing." We were quiet for a little while. "So what are you waiting for? Go ask him!"

My eyes widened. "Now? Like, right now?"

Austin nodded. "You know how to dance, you know he likes you...what else is there?"

I held up my hands. "Okay, okay. I think I should maybe eat first, you know there's nothing better than a nutritious -"

Austin silenced me with a look. "Ally, you're stalling."

I bit my lip. "I know. I just...I want this to be perfect."

"It will be perfect." Austin assured me. "Dallas has had eyes for you since the moment you guys met. You'll do fine."

* * *

A few minutes later I was holding up two different outfits for Austin's approval.

"Ally, do I look like a fashion guru?" He asked looking back down at one of my books but looked back up at me. "The pink shirt, but wear the white belt with the yellow skirt."

I laughed and went into the other room to change.

"I still think you should wear the red dress!" Austin shouted through the door. I stuck my head out of the door while I buckled my belt. "I'm asking out Dallas. Not you Austin." He grinned and winked at me. I rolled my eyes and ducked back in the room.

After pulling my shirt on and slipping my feet into the shoes Austin picked out, I walked out to go ask Dallas.

"Good luck!" He shouted after me.

I peeked into the nurse's office to see Dallas bouncing a rubber ball against the wall.

"Hey Dallas." I said shyly. He looked up and when he saw me he didn't smile as exuberantly as I had hoped, but he did smile. "Want to ditch work and take a walk?"

Dallas gave me an unfortunate smile. "Sorry Ally, but I have to get this paperwork in; maybe afterwards."

I grimaced and noticed for the first time all the paper that was at his feet. "Oh. Okay." I looked down with a disappointed look on my face. "Do you want some help?"

Dallas looked at the paperwork with a look of distaste. "Actually...I need to stretch my legs. I can walk for a minute or two."

I smiled brightly. "Okay."

If you can imagine, this scenario went over a lot more magically in my head. In my head, I would walk into the office, ask Dallas to go for a walk, and he would jump at the chance to be with me. I would walk with him shyly at first but then he would grab my hand.

We walked silently with at least a foot between us. You would think there was an invisible person in between us.

We walked to the dock and stared at the pink and orange clouds.

"You look nice Ally." He said and I smiled happily. "Are you going somewhere?"

I shook my head and my palms got sweaty. "Actually I'm dressed like this for, um, for –" I muttered and Dallas stared at me.

"For me?"

I nodded. "I, um, I actually, uh, I wanted to ask you to Summer Fling Dance. You know, if you, um, wanted to."

He didn't grin at me and say yes or twirl me around like he did in my fantasy. Instead he stared ahead at the clouds.

"Look Ally," oh no. "You are the greatest, sweetest girl at this camp."

"But?" I whispered and he sighed, finally looking into my eyes; those amazing dark brown eyes that could pierce right into my very soul.

"But I'm not interested in you like that." I was about to ask him why he kissed me but he answered me quickly. "That kiss was an accident. It was an impulse and I'm sorry."

My heart was beating fast and I felt like I was going to cry...or puke. Probably both.

"There's someone else." He said and I knew instantly who it was.

When Dallas had kissed me and pulled away because Cassidy and Nurse Christine were there, he wasn't being gentlemanly, he didn't want Cassidy to think that he had a crush on me.

"I'm sorry Ally." He said and walked away. I stood there and stared out into the sunset listening to the crunch of gravel underneath Dallas's feet. It sounded like a regular old music camp. Kids laughed and splashed around, music flowed out of the practice rooms into an almost perfect harmony.

I walked forward and straight off of the pier. There was almost no splash.

And before you get ahead of yourselves, I don't have a death wish. When I was little and I would get upset, I would go for a swim because I would be wet and no one can see my tears. After my mom died, I used to swim all the time and luckily it rained often.

I swam upwards and floated on my back. I couldn't help but feel cheated. No, I didn't think Dallas cheated on me. I just felt like he led me on.

I hoisted myself back up on the dock and I heard footsteps coming toward. There was a tap on my shoulder and I didn't have to turn around to know.

"Not now Blondie." I said wiping a tear away.

"Um, I wouldn't exactly say I'm a blondie… maybe a blonde-ish brunette." Cassidy said as she sat next to me.

I gave her a weak smile and she looked me up and down. "Felt like going for a swim?" She asked and I nodded silently. "Maybe you should have re-thought the black bra then."

I looked down to realize that my yellow shirt was, in fact, now see-through.

"Right." I sighed. "How'd you know I would be here?"

She looked down at her hands. "Dallas stopped by my cabin and talked to me. He said he wanted to know if I wanted to go to the dance with him."

"That's great. You guys will look great together. You're a perfect match. You'll get married and have adorable freaking babies!" I said getting angrier with each line. I made a snap decision to jump back into the lake to calm down.

As I resurfaced, Cassidy was staring at me with amusement in her eyes.

"I needed to calm down." I said and she shook her head.

"I said no, Ally." She said and helped me back up. "I can't do that to a friend."

I sighed and stared at my hands. "Do you like him Cassidy?"

"What?"

"Cassidy, if you like him, then be with him. I don't want to be in the way of that." I said stiffly. "So do you like him?"

She was quiet...and then she laughed. "Hell no! Ally, he is so not my type."

I smiled at her. She always knew how to cheer me up. "Okay. Thanks Cassidy."

"No problem." She smiled and stood up. "Oh and Trish wants to see you."

I nodded and sat there as she walked away.

It took me awhile to actually walk over to Trish. I floated around in the lake for a little while longer and walked at a very slow pace.

"Hey Dez. Hey Trish." I greeted and Dez smiled when he saw me. Trish...not so much. "Hey Dez, do you think Trish and I could talk alone for a minute?"

Dez huffed. "Fine." He stormed out of the room grumbling, "No one ever wants the ginger around."

"So, Cassidy said you wanted to see me." I said. "All of a sudden you need other people to do your bidding?"

She shrugged. "I haven't seen you in awhile."

I bit my lip. That was true. I hadn't seen her since I caught the Cootie Creek Cold and that was a week ago. "I've been working on the project with Austin." I explained.

She raised her eyebrows and I truly saw how upset she was. "Oh now he's Austin?" She asked snootily. "I thought he was 'Blondie' or 'Pretty Boy' or 'the Blonde devil'."

I glared at my best friend who glared back at me. "Okay, first of all; I never called him 'The Blonde Devil'." I argued. "And second of all; what the hell is your problem Trish?"

"Oh you want to know what my problem is?" She asked standing up now.

I rolled my eyes. "Enough with the theatrics Trish. If you have a problem with me then just spit it out already!"

"Ally, you and I only get so much time together over the summer! And you never want to hang out on the weekends!" She shouted.

I glared at her. "Because I'm usually doing extra credit work or I'm with my dad!" I shouted at her.

"Are you really so lame that you would rather be with your parents and do school work than be with your friends?!" She shouted at me and I could feel myself turning red.

I took a deep breath and turned around. With Trish, things could get very heated very fast, and I had to get out of there before I ruined our friendship over something stupid.

"Oh yeah! Run to mommy and daddy you little suck up!" She shouted after me and I paused at the door. I spun around and walked back over to her. All calm thoughts were out the window and I was seeing red.

I got in Trish's face and even though her face didn't show it, her eyes were fearful.

"Look, I'm sorry that I'm not as codependent as you, Trish." I said through my teeth.

At a loss for words she let out an irritated shriek and stormed back to her bed. "Ugh!" She shouted.

"Ugh!" I copied storming out of the cabin and ran back to mine.

"Hey Ally, you know this book of yours is really good." Austin said holding up one of my books.

I glared at him and snatched the book from him.

"Ally what the -!" He started but I started to hit him with the book angrily.

"Shut up!" I hit him while he got up and tried to move away but I cornered him and kept hitting him. "Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up! SHUT UP!" I shouted and finally stopped hitting him. "This is your fault! Everything is your fault!" I said and gave him another hit.

Of course, Austin being Austin, he had to make a joke. "Does that include global warming? Because I swear I had nothing to do with that."

"Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up! SHUT UP!" I shouted, once again hitting him with the book.

I sighed feeling horrible and sat on the floor, my head resting on the bed. "You said he liked me." I whispered and warily, Austin made his way over to me. He sat down next to me and despite my fiery rage I put my head on his shoulder.

We were quiet.

"Why are you wet?" He asked and I shrugged.

"He said he doesn't like me, Austin." I whispered.

Austin rose his eyebrows. "So he pushed you into the lake?"

I gave a humorless laugh. "He likes Cassidy."

"So she pushed you into the lake?"

"No one pushed me into the lake, Austin!" I shouted and he scooted away from me looking scared. "Okay." He said. He grabbed the book and threw it across the room.

"And then Trish is all pissy with me." I sighed feeling defeated.

"What?" He asked looking confused. "Why?"

I didn't look him in the eye. "Because I spend so much time with you." I said and he was quiet. I looked up and there was fear in his eyes. Like actual fear. It was flattering...but confusing. What was he afraid of?

"Oh." He said quietly. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cause a riff between you and Trish. Do you want me to go talk to her?"

I shook my head. "In these little blow outs with Trish it usually just takes a couple days and we'll be back to normal."

Austin bit his lip. "Ally...you're a really good friend." He said suddenly and I smiled.

"Thanks Austin. That's sweet...a little random, but sweet." I said looking up at him from his shoulder.

He smiled. "You're welcome." We were quiet for a little bit. "Now will you tell me why you're all wet?"

* * *

_Camp Days: 3 Weeks and 5 Days_

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**Review please! Favorite line/part and yada yada yada. Blah blah blah.**

**Fun Fact # 5: The only reason this chapter came out so fast is because it was written on my Kindle Fire in the span of one sleepless night and half of a day. **

**Fun Fact # 6: Originally there were 3 people who were going to see Ally on the dock. Obviously, one of them was Cassidy. The two alternate characters were Trish and Austin.  
**


	7. Chapter 7: Sign Ups

**I do not own Austin & Ally. **

* * *

Ally POV

I had a tub of fruity mint swirl ice cream in my hands and I was wrapped up in blankets with Austin sitting at the other end of my bed eating cookie dough ice cream.

"I can't believe I was so deluded that I thought Dallas actually liked me." I mumbled and shoved another spoonful of ice cream in my mouth.

Austin sighed. "I can't believe the characters died in the end." Austin said holding up one of my reading books. He had taken a liking to it for some reason and refused to put it down.

"What? You never heard of the two star crossed lovers who take their lives?" I asked in amusement.

He shrugged. "Well yeah, but I didn't know it was Romeo & Juliet." He said. "Switch." He mumbled and we switched ice cream.

I laughed at him and ate another spoonful of ice cream. "Who did you think the star crossed lover's were?" I asked curiously.

"I don't know. Katniss and Peeta?" He suggested and I laughed. "Whatever, it's still my favorite book."

I tilted my head curiously. "Austin, I don't mean to seem rude, but how does that work? I mean, most kids don't like to read Shakespeare, let alone understand it. You have dyslexia and you not only understand it, but it's your favorite book."

He gave me a rueful smile. "I was lucky. We found out that I had dyslexia at a pretty young age and my parents helped me by making me read everything. I hated it growing up, but now I'm pretty grateful."

I nodded and grimaced. "Sorry."

"Don't be." He shrugged. "Trust me I've had so much worse."

"What do you mean?" I asked sitting next to him now.

He sighed. "When people found out, they didn't want to be seen with me."

I glared at my hands. How stupid was that?! "Are you serious?! That's so stupid! It doesn't make you weird! Now if you came out as a guy who dresses like a woman named Bertha and enjoyed playing with My Little Pony; that would be weird!" I ranted making Austin laugh.

"No, they didn't want to be seen with me because they were afraid to catch dyslexia." I stared at Austin and he shook his head. "They didn't understand dyslexia."

"Wow." I said. "I'm so sorry Austin."

He shrugged. "It's fine now."

We were silent for a little while. "Switch." I said and passed him my ice cream. "I'm just annoyed that I don't have a date for Summer Fling…again." I sighed and Austin sat up straighter. "Take me."

I dropped my spoon and choked. I'm not sure how you choke on ice cream, but I managed it. Austin pounded me on my back while I coughed and sputtered.

"What?!" I finally exclaimed after calming down.

Austin shook his head. "Think about it, I'm going to be performing so you won't have to go through the excruciatingly painful process of dancing in public, you won't seem lame for going alone, and you're safe to know no guy will make a move on you."

I raised my eyebrows. "How do you know that no one will hit on me?"

"I'm the camp owner's godson; that practically makes me the camp's prince." Austin said cockily, and I rolled my eyes.

"Has anyone ever told you that you're very self-obsessed?" I asked him, and he bumped me playfully.

"Only all the time." He said. "So what do you say?"

I gnawed on my lip. I know it was a little pathetic, but I was still kind of hoping that Dallas would change his mind. And if he did, I didn't want to jeopardize my chance of being his girlfriend by going to a dance with Austin and have everyone think I was dating him!

"Can I have time to think about it?" I asked he shrugged his shoulders.

"Sure." He nodded and Uncle Chip peeked inside our cabin.

"Ally, you're late for lunch – is that the kitchen's ice cream?!" he exclaimed and my eyes widened.

"No!" I answered with a mouth full of fruity mint swirl. I popped the lid back on, grabbed the spoonful of cookie dough that was half way in Austin's mouth and dumped it back into the canister, and ran back to the kitchen leaving a stunned Austin and Uncle Chip.

* * *

"– and so I can't go to the dance with Austin, because of Dallas." I finished explaining to Uncle Chip and looked up to see him staring at me. "Sorry, was I rambling? What did you ask me?"

Uncle Chip smiled in amusement. "I asked how the egg salad was coming along."

"Oh." I deadpanned and looked at it. "It's going good.

Uncle Chip laughed. "I forgot how cute teenagers' little drama is." I gave him a look.

"Are you kidding me? Is your memory fading a little, old man?" I teased while washing my hands.

Uncle Chip's mouth dropped open and he looked like he was frozen there. I started to laugh, but then he reached into the egg salad and smeared a bunch on my face. I let out a small squeal while he licked his fingers.

"I don't know Ally; I think it needs more eggs. Too much mayo." He said and I reached for the egg carton sneakily.

"Really?" I asked innocently. "Dang, guess I'll just –" I cut off and threw the egg at him. It hit him in the chest and he looked at me offended.

An all out food fight commenced and I would've won, if he hadn't charged into battle with fistfuls of mayo.

We were laughing as we cleaned ourselves off, but after awhile we were silent. I think it was around the time that I was picking the cheese out of my hair when Uncle Chip spoke up.

"I asked Nurse Christine to marry me." He said suddenly and my head snapped up.

"What?!" I squealed. I jumped up and hugged him. "I didn't even know that you guys were dating! When did this happen?!"

Uncle Chip grinned. "I didn't even tell you what she said." He laughed and I rolled my eyes. "Fine; she said yes."

I squealed and hugged him again. "Congratulations! Tell me about it!" I demanded and he laughed. We sat down and leaned against the counter. He set his head against the counter.

"Okay. Well it was yesterday. I asked her to take a walk with me, and she told Dallas to work on the paperwork."

I thought about that. SO that was why Nurse Christine was nowhere to be seen when I asked Dallas out. It was pretty clever of Uncle Chip too if he wanted to remain low key. Around that time all the campers would be indoors.

"We took a walk along the lake and she started to cry. I asked her what was wrong, and she said she knew that I was going to break up with her. She said 'well do it already' and I said 'fine'." He continued. "So I got down on one knee, and told her that for the past 3 years we've been dating –"

"You've been dating for 3 years?!" I shouted. He was really good at remaining low key.

He laughed and nodded. "Anyway, I said I love her, and that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her."

"What did she say? What did she say?!" I asked excitedly slapping him on his shoulder causing him to laugh again.

"She said, and this is a direct quote, 'of course, you idiot!'" he said mimicking her voice making me laugh. "Then she tackled me into the sand."

"Aw." I placed my hands over my heart like I was touched. "They grow up so fast." I teased and he rolled his eyes and pushed me playfully.

"So…Dallas? Really?" he asked and I pushed him back.

"Don't judge." I said and sighed. "He's sweet."

"He's a douche."

"Uncle Chip!" I exclaimed laughing in shock and he shrugged.

"I'm sorry Ally, you know that I love all the campers, but…Dallas? Really?" he asked making me laugh again. "Ally you're my favorite camper – don't tell Trish – and I don't want to see you end up with a guy that will kiss you and then make a move on your friend."

I smiled faintly and rested my chin on my knees. "You're a good guy, Uncle Chip. Nurse Christine is lucky to have you." I laughed and shook my head. "I don't know why I'm going to tell you this, but I've always had the tiniest crush on you." I admitted and he laughed.

"Believe it or not Ally, but I had a feeling you did." He admitted making me huff.

"Am I really that transparent?!" I exclaimed making him laugh.

"A little bit. Just a little bit." He said. "But it never would've worked between us." And I nodded.

"Because of our age difference." I said and he shook his head.

"Actually, I was going to say because of the height difference, but that too." He said seriously but then cracked a smile. I rolled my eyes. "You deserve someone that will make you feel loved, and will always be there for you. Someone who is not only your…your –" he scrambled looking for the right words.

"Lover?" I suggested and he made a face.

"I've known you since you were a little girl, even thinking about the fact that you've kissed a boy grosses me out." He said and I laughed. "Someone who is not only your boyfriend but your best friends too. Someone like –"

"Someone like Austin?" I asked finally getting where he was coming from.

He scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. "Well…yeah."

I shook my head. "No. No, no, no, no, no, no…no."

"That's a lot of no's Ally. You sure you still don't hate him?" he chuckled and I shook my head.

"Austin and I are just friends." I said.

"He told me you guys are best friends." Uncle Chip interrupted making me laugh.

"No, just friends." I said.

Uncle Chip shrugged. "I'll talk to him about it later."

I stared at Uncle Chip in awe. Austin looked nothing like him. Where Austin had bright blonde hair, Uncle Chip's hair was dark. Where Austin's skin had only a slight tan to it, Uncle Chip's skin had an even darker tan to it. Even their bone structure was different!

But somehow, it was like looking at the future Austin. They were so much alike; childish, funny, subtly intelligent, and very loyal. I studied the future Austin and thought about how I would feel if Austin were getting married to his own Nurse Christine. I couldn't decide.

And quite frankly, that scared the hell out of me.

Uncle Chip checked his watch. "You better get going. You have to go sign up for an activity to participate in for the Summer Fling Dance."

"But what about –" I started gesturing to the huge mess and he shook his head.

"It's alright, I'll get Janitor Austin to help me with it later." He winked at me and I laughed.

I ran over the Counselor's Announcement Board…and just my luck, both Trish and Dallas were walking away from it. I faltered upon seeing them, and they did the same. Even though it had been only a day, I wasn't mad at Trish for what she said. How was she supposed to know that I couldn't run back to my mommy anymore?

But apparently she was still mad. She glared at me and stormed away. Dallas stood there, staring at me as if I was a bomb awaiting diffusing.

"Hey Ally." He said awkwardly. Despite my mixed feelings for Dallas and the slowly decreasing heartache I was currently suffering from him, I managed a smile.

"Hi Dallas." I waved and walked passed him.

I walked up to the board and I swore I felt like throwing up when I read the available activities. Or should I say activity. Knowing my luck, you can guess which one it was.

**Musical Performances:**

_Austin Moon_

_Cassidy Grey_

There was the signup sheet; the only one with a blank space available. And even though that I would rather be locked in a room with both Dallas and Trish, I watched myself grabbed the pencil and write my name on the line.

I walked away feeling light and breezy, and when I reached my cabin I curled up underneath the sheets, not knowing what else to do.

"Ally?" Austin entered the cabin and ran over to my side. "Are you okay? Are you dead? Did someone hurt you? Is that egg salad in your hair? Oh my God! Did someone kill you with egg salad?!" He exclaimed in a panic.

"No one killed me with egg salad, Austin." I sighed and he looked relieved. "Though I wish someone would."

He looked puzzled. "What? Why?"

I sat up and he sat in my bed, immediately putting my feet in his lap. "There was only one activity available for me to sign up." I explained. "It was musical performance."

Austin's mouth made an 'O' and I sighed. "But can't you get someone to switch with you?"

I ripped the flyer off of the pin board and handed it to him. "Read the print underneath the date for sign ups."

He read it aloud. "There will be no switching or getting out of the activity you have signed up for. No exceptions." He read. "Jeez, you'd think this was pretty strict for a music camp."

I groaned and slapped my hands over my face. "Austin, what am I going to do?" I asked sounding muffled.

I heard him sigh. "I honestly don't know Ally."

"That was supposed to be the part where you try to cheer me up, and though it was unsuccessful it still meant a lot to me." I explained putting my hands down.

"You know, you've gone to this camp for like 5 years. And I haven't heard you sing a single note." Austin pointed out and I shook my head.

"There is a reason for that." I said standing up.

"Where are you going?" He asked as I grabbed a towel.

"I need to take a shower. The egg salad is starting to smell." I sighed, and walked to the showers.

After taking a long shower, I made my way to Cassidy's cabin. I knocked hesitantly and she opened the door wide. I ducked to the side and peeked in warily.

"Ally?" she asked sounding confused. "Are you, um, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." I said dismissing the question. "Trish isn't here, is she?"

Cassidy sighed and rolled her eyes. "No, Trish isn't here." I walked inside and Cassidy closed the door. "You know, I would expect you to make sure Dallas wasn't here."

I scratched the back of my neck. "Actually I watched him leave the cabin for work." I admitted.

"So what do you need?" she asked sitting on the bed.

"Two things." I said. "First thing, can you braid my hair? I don't know how."

Cassidy laughed and nodded. We talked as she braided my hair.

"Ally, isn't this something your mother should have taught you?" Cassidy asked after finishing the braid.

I opened my mouth, about to tell her about my mom, but instead I just laughed.

"Yeah, probably." I nodded.

Cassidy smiled. "So what was the second thing you needed?"

I sighed. "You talk to Dallas right?" I asked and her eyes darkened, and her smile slipped into a frown.

"Unfortunately, yes. I have to after all." She pointed out and I sat on my knees on her bed.

"Is there…is there any chance that he'll change his mind?" I asked and when she continued to look confused I went on. "About me?"

She sighed and stared at her hands. "Why do you like him Ally?" she asked. "You deserve someone so much better than him."

"It's something about his smile, and…" I paused and a tear leaked dramatically out of my eye. I wiped it away. "He doesn't treat me like I'm a freak."

Cassidy's eyebrows furrowed. "What?" she whispered.

"It's no secret that every guy in the camp thinks I'm weird." I sighed. "I mean, my nose is always stuck in a book, I'm a singer/songwriter who hasn't performed since the 5th grade, and I obey the rules all the time."

Cassidy grimaced. "Ally, that's not true."

I nodded. "But it is." I got up. "I'll see you later Cassidy."

When I opened the door, Trish was there with her hand raised as if she were about to knock. We stared at each other and without saying anything, and I finally walked passed her.

"Austin?" I asked looking around my cabin.

"What's up?" Austin asked, coming out of the bathroom while putting a new shirt on.

I smiled. "So we'll be going to the dance together as friends, right?"

Austin grinned at me. "I guess so."

I grinned. "Great." I sighed then. "But you're going to have to help me with something." I told him.

"Okay." He nodded.

I grabbed his hand and led him to the cafeteria. When I peeked in, there wasn't anyone in there, so I led him to the grand piano.

We sat down and I peeked at him; he was looking bewildered.

"I want you to help me get over my stage fright." I said and he raised his eyebrows.

"So…you're going to sing for me?" he asked sounding incredibly excited, and I laughed.

"I'm going to attempt to." I said feeling jittery. "You ready?" I asked and flipped to the right page in my book which I had grabbed right before leaving the cabin.

"Isn't that your mom's song?" he asked reading over it.

I nodded. "I can never forget the melody, so I made a song out of it." I admitted and he looked impressed. "Do you like it?"

"It's…impressive." He said sounding blown away.

I laughed. "Thanks."

I began to play the keys.

* * *

It's been almost two hours and I must've attempted to sing the song 30 times. I had taken my jacket and shoes off and they were now laying somewhere off to the side. Austin was laying on his stomach on the piano reading the song from my book which I had handed to him with difficulty after my 12th attempt.

He sighed. "Ally, I've heard you mumble the song 30 times, and I've read the song about 10 times. I'm pretty sure that _I _could perform the song in my sleep now." He got off of the piano and sat closely to me. "What are you so afraid of? We're just practicing, and from what I have strained to hear, you have a beautiful voice."

I rubbed my sore fingers. "I'm afraid of embarrassing myself."

Austin rolled his eyes. "Ally, you dangled from a tree for half an hour, only to lose your shirt and break your arm in front of the entire camp. Everything should be easy after that." I gave him a look remembering that he was the one who undressed me. He laughed nervously. "Heh heh. I never apologized for that, have I?"

I shook my head. "Austin…" I trailed off and he gave me a look.

"Ally, it's just me." He said.

_Yeah, but what you don't know is that 'just you' has a very important opinion in my eyes. _

"Fine." I sighed and for the 31st time, I sang the song.

* * *

_Camp Days: 3 Weeks and 6 Days_

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**So if any one is curious, I've finally decided which actors I want as Uncle Chip and Nurse Christine. It's Stephen Colletti, and Shantel VanSanten. Oh and next chapter is finally the Summer Fling Dance!  
**


	8. Chapter 8: Summer Fling Dance Part 1

**So it is the chapter that everyone has been waiting for! Reminder: this is only part 1. Next chapter is part 2. **

**Anyway, I don't own Austin & Ally or any songs mentioned in this chapter or the ones before.  
**

**WARNING! THERE IS A CHANCE YOU WILL BE PISSED WITH THE AUTHOR AT THE END OF THIS CHAPTER!  
**

* * *

Ally POV

It was the morning of the dance and as you can believe, I was a nervous wreck. But in all honesty, I think I was doing a pretty top notch job of hiding it.

"Ally, stop worrying." Austin said from his bed above mine. "I heard you sing and you're going to do awesome."

I paused in eating my cheese and chocolate bar. "I'm not worrying." I lied and played my presentation with the volume off.

Austin flipped so he was hanging upside down. "I could practically feel your nervous energy; so calm down. You did great this past week when you were with me."

I stared at him and swallowed my mouth full of cheese and chocolate bar.

"You know one of these days you're going to fall like that, and I'm going to laugh." I said and shook my head. "Besides Austin, you're so confident that when I performing with you near me, I actually felt your confident energy."

There was a knock at our cabin door and Austin got down, answering it. Cassidy walked in, and her eyes widened when she looked at me.

Austin got in bed next to me as Cassidy walked over to me, grabbed the cheese and chocolate bar, and threw it out the window.

"What do you think you are doing?!" she put her hands on her hips.

I stared longingly after my snack. "Well I thought I was enjoying a yummy snack, but apparently that's out the window."

Austin laughed and held his hand out for a fist bump. "Clever word play, I like it." He chuckled.

Cassidy slapped his hand away. "Well you're not going to like it very much when she can't fit into her dress."

"Should I feel insulted?" I asked feeling half amused and half hurt.

Cassidy shook her head. "Ally, those camp snacks are so fattening. You'd gain like ten pounds after eating one."

I bit the inside of my cheek. "I guess it's a good thing I only ate half of it then."

Cassidy sighed. "Whatever, I'm here to help you get ready for the dance."

Austin and I looked at each other and then looked at the clock.

"Cassidy, it's only twelve o' clock." I said slowly. "The dance starts at seven."

"Beauty takes time Allyson." She said.

"My name isn't Allyson." I said slowly, but Cassidy was done listening. She peeked out the door and shouted something.

Suddenly several people came in wielding different bags of all sorts. They began setting up a mini salon in the middle of the room.

"And you sir," Cassidy grabbed Austin's hand and began to lead him out of the room. One of Cassidy's workers tossed her Austin's outfit. "Need to go." She said.

She handed Austin his outfit, pushed him outside, and closed the door.

"Cassidy!" I exclaimed and she pushed me into the chair that was set up in the mini salon.

"Hush Ally. I only have seven hours to work on you, myself, and Trish." Cassidy commanded.

"Wait, Trish is coming here?!" I panicked, but she shook her head.

"Calm down. I'm going back and forth between your cabin and hers; which is stupid by the way." She added.

"Sorry." I coughed as they sprayed my hair with hairspray. "Cassidy…who are these people?" I asked gesturing to the girls working on my hair.

"I asked Uncle Chip if I could call in a favor. He said yes and my dad hired Sally's Salon to come here and help us get ready."

Of course, how could I forget? Cassidy came from a rich family because her dad was like this genius that graduated high school at twelve. Later he invented this science thing that helped a lot of people. I don't know all the details.

Sometimes this caused Cassidy to be a little daft in some places, but she gave wonderful birthday and Christmas presents.

It had actually been 5 hours, all of which were spent generously.

They spent an hour straightening my hair, and making sure that there was one single strand of hair that wasn't wavy. Then they spent 2 hours making my hair into thick curls and trying to control my bangs.

After that they argued about how much make up to put on my face. One of the girls, whose name was Ashley, wanted to put as much make up on me as possible, where as another girl named Laura wanted me to look more natural.

When I sided with Laura, they actually spent an hour making me look 'natural'. Unfortunately, I didn't know what shoes to wear with the red dress (yes, I was wearing the famous red dress) and asked them their opinion. Laura and Ashley began to argue about that…for an hour.

I finally understood why Cassidy said I needed seven hours.

"How's it going in here?" Cassidy asked completely dressed.

"Cassidy, you look beautiful." I breathed.

Cassidy's style always screamed complicated. Her dresses were loud and expensive, but in a good way, and her hair always looked like it took hours to perfect.

This year, Cassidy's dress was a gorgeous strapless dark purple with a big ribbon and cute bow under the bust. Above the bow was an interesting floral imprint, and the bottom ruffled out slightly and ended at her knees.

Her hair was gorgeous as usual, and in a waterfall braid. Her hair hung down her back in ringlets. Needless to say, I was jealous.

"Thanks Ally." She smiled. "You look amazing as well, but why don't you have your dress on?"

I shrugged and pointed at the workers who were still arguing over the shoes.

"They haven't been able to agree on anything." I said and Cassidy nodded.

"Sorry, I had to assign them to you. If I gave them to Trish she would've ended up punching them in the face." She explained and I nodded. That was true.

She looked at my dress, then at all the shoes I had on my bed, and next thing I knew she was untying the ribbons that held her shoes to her feet and were stepping out of them.

"Cassidy, what are you doing?" I asked and she handed me the shoes.

"They go better with your dress." She said and grabbed one of my 2 inch heels.

I shook my head and tried to give them back. "Cassidy, I can't! These are at least 3 inches high. The highest I've gone are 2 inches!"

"Actually they're 4 inches." She said and when she saw the look I gave her she shrugged. "If you're going to get that good night kiss from Austin, you don't want to make him bend down too much."

My mouth fell open and I turned red. "Who even said I wanted to kiss Austin?!"

"Well isn't customary to kiss your date at the end of the night?" she asked and I had to acknowledge the fact that it was true in my case.

Every year that I actually managed to get a date to the Summer Fling, my date always managed to kiss me, whether it was on the cheek or on the lips.

"Well, I'm not going to kiss Austin." I said and she shrugged. She looked behind me at Laura and Ashley, who had stopped fighting.

"Ten bucks they're going to kiss." She said to them and all three of them started betting.

"Oh, just get me in my dress!" I snapped causing them to laugh.

After being almost completely exposed, they managed to slip my dress over my head without smearing my makeup or messing up my hair.

Obviously, my dress was red. It went to about my knees, had a nice flare skirt, and was strapless. There was also a small bow on the hip.

I held onto Cassidy's shoulder while I put on my shoes. It was so weird being so high up.

"Cassidy, this isn't going to work." I complained. I had just tried to walk and all was going well when I wobbled a little and tripped.

Cassidy shook her head. "No it isn't. Just don't think about it and you'll be fine."

"I'm going to break my ankle." I sighed and Cassidy gave me an exasperated look.

She looked around the room, and grabbed my book. "Hm Ally, what kind of private thoughts have you written in here?" she asked and walked into the other room.

My eyes widened and my mind went into panic mode. "Don't touch my book!" I shouted and without thinking about it, I ran over to Cassidy to get my book back. "Why would you do that?! You know how sensitive –" I started, but she grinned at me.

"Ally Dawson, you just ran in heels." She congratulated, and then she towed me over to the chair. "Alright; now the painful process."

"Painful process?" I asked and Ashley pushed my head back.

"Don't worry Ally, you'll be fine." She said and she began plucking my eyebrows.

It wasn't too painful, but it wasn't exactly pleasant.

Cassidy looked at me smiling even though she had just endured the same painful process. "How you doing Ally?"

I frowned. "My eyebrows hurt."

She shrugged. "You get used to it. Okay, now the soothing part." She assured me.

She was telling the truth. Laura and Ashley did our nails and rubbed our legs in this weird lotion that apparently removes all the hair.

My nails had a red French tip with silver nail polish around the edge of it, and Cassidy's were purple with a black design on the thumbs.

"Just in time!" Cassidy sang and I looked at the clock.

"Cassidy, we're nearly ten minutes late." I said, and there was a knock at the cabin door.

"Austin doesn't seem to mind." Cassidy teased.

I rolled my eyes and opened the door. Austin was standing there in a simple red shirt with a black coat over it and a loose black tie. He looked me up and down and smiled.

"You're wearing the dress!" he laughed, and I looked down in embarrassment.

"Oh, um, do I look bad?" I asked and his smile slipped away and he looked panicked.

"No, no! You look great, I was just –" Austin began to scramble for words and Cassidy walked over.

"Okay, I'm going to interrupt before this gets awkward. He thinks you look beautiful Ally, and Austin, she thinks you don't look half bad." She said and Austin and I grinned at each other. "Now how do I look?"

Austin looked her up and down and had a slight chuckle to his voice. "You look…loud."

Cassidy smiled as if it were the best compliment she ever heard. "Aw, thank you Austin! Okay, let's go!"

"Wait, what about your date?" Austin asked and Cassidy snorted.

"Mama doesn't need a boy to make her happy." Cassidy said and walked ahead of us.

Austin and I laughed and he took his right hand out from behind him. He had a red, yellow, and white paper flower.

"Most guys get real flowers imported from the real world." He explained and handed it to me. "I decided to break the mold."

I smiled at him. "Austin, that's so sweet."

He held out his arm. "Shall we?" he asked and I took his arm.

"We shall." I smiled and we made our way to the main area.

It looked almost the same every year. A big stage, twinkling lights hung above the area, and tables filled with drinks and food.

Austin turned to me with an unfortunate look on his face. "Sorry Ally, but since I was the first to sign up, I'm going to be the first to perform. Don't take my first song to literal though, okay?"

"What?" I asked, but he already made his way to the stage.

"Hey everybody!" he cheered into the mic and everyone turned their attention to him. "This first song goes out to my date and friend, Ally Dawson." He said and nodded to the rest of the band.

I laughed when I heard the song, it was one of my favorites when I was younger, and I understood what he meant by not taking it literally.

_She's cold and she's cruel  
But she knows what she's doin'  
She pushed me in the pool  
At our last school reunion  
She laughs at my dreams  
But I dream about her laughter  
Strange as it seems  
She's the one I'm after  
_

I ran to the edge of the stage and did the little rock and sway Austin taught me. Even though he had told me to dance closer to the middle, I didn't care. No one was paying attention to me.

_'cause she's bittersweet  
She knocks me off of my feet  
And I can't help myself  
I don't want anyone else  
She's a mystery  
She's too much for me  
But I keep comin' back for more  
She's just the girl I'm lookin' for_

_She can't keep a secret  
For more than an hour  
She runs on 100 proof attitude power  
And the more she ignores me  
The more I adore her  
What can I do?  
I'd do anything for her  
_

Austin winked at me and made a heart with his fingers, I smiled and we locked eyes for the rest of the song.

_'cause she's bittersweet  
She knocks me off of my feet  
And I can't help myself  
I don't want anyone else  
She's a mystery  
She's too much for me  
But I keep comin' back for more  
She's just the girl I'm lookin' for_

_And when she sees it's me_  
_On her caller ID_  
_She won't pick up the phone_  
_She'd rather be alone_  
_But I can't give up just yet_  
_Cause every word she's ever said_  
_Is still ringin' in my head_  
_Still ringin' in my head_

_She's cold and she's cruel_  
_But she knows what she's doin'_  
_Knows just what to say_  
_So my whole day is ruined_

I grimaced remembering how true that was and how close we had come to not doing the project together.

_'cause she's bittersweet_  
_She knocks me off of my feet_  
_And I can't help myself_  
_I don't want anyone else_  
_She's a mystery_  
_She's too much for me_  
_But I keep comin' back for more_

_Cause she's bittersweet  
She knocks me off of my feet  
And I can't help myself  
I don't want anyone else  
She's a mystery  
She's too much for me  
But I keep comin' back for more  
Oh, I keep comin' back for more  
She's just the girl I'm lookin' for  
Just the girl I'm lookin' for_

_Just the girl_  
_I'm lookin' for_  
_She's just the girl_  
_I'm lookin' for_  
_Just the girl_  
_I'm lookin' for_  
_Just the girl I'm lookin' for_

"Love you best friend." He said into the mic and I smiled.

"Friend!" I shouted over the roar of the crowd and he shrugged.

"We'll talk about it." He mouthed and I decided to wander around. After awhile I made my way to the refreshments table.

I was dipping a chip in salsa when someone spoke up.

"So I see you came here with Austin."

It was Trish. I looked up to see that she was in charge of this refreshment table. Her hair had much less frizz and poof to it and it was tossed over one of her shoulders. A few strands we leaked out and her bangs hung over the left side of her face.

Her dress was gorgeous of course, and totally her style. It was zebra striped and it had a thick pink ribbon around the middle.

"Just as friends." I said and she shrugged. I turned to walk away, but turned back around. "I like you're dress Trish."

She looked a little shocked, but she managed a small smile. "Thanks, I like yours."

It was painfully awkward, and I could tell that she was still a tad fired up from our last talk.

"So who did you come with?" I asked and she turned pink. Wow, Trish blushing? She must really like the guy.

"Um, believe it or not, but the doofus asked me." She said and my mouth dropped open.

"Dez?"

She nodded. "He was being really sweet, so I said yes. I guess we're kind of a thing now."

I smiled. "Well I'm happy you're happy." I said and waved good bye.

We weren't exactly ready to forgive each other yet, but we were civil.

But all thoughts of Trish disappeared when I spotted Dallas talking with Cassidy. She was laughing and he was smiling and it was so obvious that he had feelings for her. You could totally see it in his eyes. As for Cassidy, the jury was still out.

I heard Austin's song end, but I couldn't tear my eyes away from Dallas and Cassidy.

In my head, that was supposed to be me and him. And maybe I didn't want it with Austin, but I really did want to slow dance with a boy I liked and have him kiss me at the end of the night.

"Dez!" I heard Austin call away from the mic. I looked over at Austin who was watching me watch Dallas and Cassidy. He gestured for Dez to take his place and he mumbled something that I couldn't understand.

He jumped off the stage and made his way over to me.

"Austin, what are you doing?" I asked and he smiled at me.

"I'm not about to let my dance lessons go to waste." He said making me smile, and he turned to Dez who was on the stage looking bewildered. "Hit it Dez!"

Dez shrugged. "This was a slow song that I always loved as a kid." He cleared his throat and began to wail into the mic as Austin and I got into the dance position of swaying. "CAN YOU FEEL THE LOVE TONIGHT?! IT IS WHERE WE ARE!"

Austin and I stopped dancing and stared at Dez, who cut off. Cassidy was on stage now looking amused. She tapped him on the shoulder and whispered to him.

He nodded and gestured for her to go up to the mic.

"Hi everyone. That was um…interesting." She said and we all laughed. "Anyway, this is one of my all time favorite songs. I hope you like it." She said and closed her eyes.

Austin and I began to sway to the music.

_How do I,_  
_Get through the night without you?_  
_If I had to live without you,_  
_What kind of life would that be?_

I smiled at Austin as we swayed to Cassidy's soothing voice.

"Austin this is the sweetest thing ever." I said and he shrugged.

"I've been known to do the occasional sweet thing." He said. I laughed and laid my head against his chest, just listening to his heart beat.

_And tell me now_  
_How do I live without you?_  
_I want to know,_  
_How do I breathe without you?_  
_If you ever go,_  
_How do I ever, ever survive?_  
_How do I, how do I, oh how do I live?_

_Without you,_  
_There'd be no sun in my sky,_  
_There would be no love in my life,_  
_There'd be no world left for me._  
_And I,_  
_Baby I don't know what I would do,_  
_I'd be lost if I lost you,_  
_If you ever leave,_  
_Baby you would take away everything real in my life,_

_And tell me now,_  
_How do I live without you?_  
_I want to know,_  
_How do I breathe without you?_  
_If you ever go,_  
_How do I ever, ever survive?_  
_How do I, how do I, oh how do I live?_

I looked up at Austin and we smiled at each other. He rested his forehead on mine and we danced like that.

_Please tell me baby,_  
_How do I go on?_

_If you ever leave,_  
_Baby you would take away everything,_  
_I need you with me,_  
_Baby don't you know that you're everything,_  
_Real in my life?_

_And tell me now,_  
_How do I live without you,_  
_I want to know,_  
_How do I breathe without you?_  
_If you ever go,_  
_How do I ever, ever survive?_  
_How do I, how do I, oh how do I live?_

I looked up at Austin and couldn't help but notice how beautiful his eyes looked. Without thinking about it I started leaning forward. Our noses touched and his lips were so close to mine.

_How do I live without you?_

_How do I live without you baby?_

The song ended right before our lips could touch, and the crowd clapping woke us up from our reverie. Almost immediately Austin and I stepped away from each other feeling a little awkward.

I couldn't decide what I felt. On one hand I was still very loyal to Dallas, but on the other hand…I really wished that Cassidy held that last note a little longer.

* * *

_Camp Days: 4 Weeks and 6 Days_

* * *

**Bahahahahahahahahahahahahaha ha! Oh my gosh, I feel evil. Trust me, a big part of me really wanted to make them kiss but I didn't think the timing was just right.  
**

**Okay, so review your favorite part/line and/or your least favorite part/line. And hey, you can even review how pissed you are at me rating from 1-10 :)  
**

**Oh and the two songs in this chapter were How Do I Live by Leann Rimes and Just The Girl by The Click Five. These songs were chosen because when I first heard Cassidy's voice I thought she sounded like Leann Rimes, and Just The Girl totally fit this story.  
**

**One more thing, Ally, Cassidy, and Trish's outfits and hairdos are on my profile.  
**

**Fun Fact # 7: This is a fun fact for last chapter actually. Anyway, Austin says his favorite book is Romeo & Juliet. This is inspired from the fact that Ross Lynch's (actor for Austin) favorite movie is the Romeo & Juliet (1968).  
**

**Fun Fact #8: Worker Laura was inspired by Laura Marano (actor for Ally). Obviously Worker Laura doesn't look like the actor, she just has the same name and taste as Ally.  
**


	9. Chapter 9: Summer Fling Dance Part 2

**So far you guys seem pretty cool about the whole not making them kiss scenario, but I'm still wary. **

**Anyway, I don't own Austin & Ally or any songs mentioned in this chapter.  
**

* * *

Ally POV

It's been a few hours since Austin and I's last dance, and now I sat backstage feeling as if I were frozen in terror. Cassidy was giving her last performance of the night, which meant that I would be up next.

"Ally!" the stage manager called over her shoulder. "You're up next! Get ready!"

I gave her a good enough smile and when she looked away I panicked and ran away.

"Ally?! Are you in here?!" I heard Austin call and I heard him walk into the bathroom. "Ally?!"

"I can't do it Austin." I said with a very shaky voice. "I'm sorry."

I heard him walk over to the stall I was in and I felt him lean on it. "Ally, we talked about this. All you have to do is sing your mom's song to yourself and you'll feel fine."

"Yeah, but that was alone with you during practice. There are so many people out there." I said near tears. "I'm going to make a fool of myself."

"Ally, you could never make a fool of yourself." He said softly. "Just open the door, and perform. Keep your eyes on me, like you're singing to me."

Slowly, I reached over and opened the door. Austin was standing there looking nervous.

"Are they really mad at me?" I asked referring to the stage managers.

He shook his head. "Not really, Cassidy had an extra song prepared so she's performing it while we look for you."

I sighed and we walked back to the party.

"Where the hell were you?!" the stage manager asked frantically when she saw me.

I shrugged. "I was in the bathroom. Sorry, I had some, uh, pre-show jitters."

She sighed. "Well, you're up right now." She said and I turned to Austin, ready to puke.

He put his hands on my shoulders and looked me in the eyes. "Ally, calm thoughts. You're going to do great, okay?" he wrapped his arms around me in a hug and let me go before I could hug him back. "I'm going to be right at the front of the stage. Just look for me."

I nodded, and numbly walked out onto the stage. A few people cheered and I sat at the piano bench.

My knees wobbled, and my hands were slick with sweat. I tried to rub them off on my dress subtly, but the material wasn't absorbent.

My breathing began to become heavy, and my heart was racing.

"Um, uh." I repeated and I could hear the crowd whispering and I could feel their judging stares on me.

"What are you doing?" the stage manager whispered off stage at me and I scanned the front for Austin. My eyes began to water and I found him. He almost looked as nervous as I did.

"Help." I squeaked slightly and I heard a chuckle throughout the crowd and I could see some of my friends giving me sympathetic looks.

My hands began to shake and the lights were dimming.

_Finally. _I thought to myself. My misery was about to end.

I waited for myself to faint, but I didn't. then I realized that the lights around the dance were the ones that were dimmed. What the –?

"Here we go, come with me. There's a world out there that we should see. Take my hand, close your eyes. With you right here, I'm a rocketeer." I heard someone sing into a mic and my head snapped up. There was no mistaking the bright blonde hair.

Austin looked at me and nodded for me to go. I looked up at the sky a little nervously, and even though I was still panicking, I sang.

Here we go, come with me

There's a world out there that we should see

Take my hand, close your eyes

With you right here, I'm a rocketeer

"_Let's fly…_

_Up, up here we go, go_

_Up, up here we go, go_

_Let's fly..._

_Up, up here we go, go_

_Where we stop nobody knows, knows"_

The band joined in, and I grabbed the mic and joined Austin on center stage. We stared at each other as I sang.

"_Where we goin' we don't need roads,_

_And where we stop nobody knows,_

_To the stars if you really want it_

_Got, got a jetpack with your name on it_

_Above the clouds in the atmosphere,_

_Just say the words and we outta here,_

_Hold my hand if you feeling scared,_

_We flying up, up outta here"_

Ausin grinned at me, obviously relieved. I heard a few people cheering and I could tell that they were dancing, but I feared that if I looked at them, I would panic. Austin joined me for the chorus.

"_Here we go, come with me_

_There's a world out there that we should see_

_Take my hand, close your eyes_

_With you right here, I'm a rocketeer,  
_

_Let's fly..._

_Up, up here we go, go_

_Up, up here we go, go_

_Let's fly..._

_Up, up here we go, go,_

_Where we stop nobody knows, knows"_

Austin broke away from my stare, and he danced while he took the solo.

"_Baby, we can stay fly like a G6_

_Shop the streets of Tokyo, get you fly kicks_

_Girl you always on my mind, got my head up in the sky"_

Austin winked at me, pointed at me, and then pointed at the sky making me laugh.

"_And I'm never looking down feeling priceless, yeah_

_Where we at, only few have known_

_Go on the next level, Super Mario_

_I hope this works out, Cardio_

_'Til then let's fly, Geronimo"_

He came back over to me and we sang the chorus together. I couldn't believe how easy this was!

"_Here we go, come with me_

_There's a world out there that we should see_

_Take my hand, close your eyes_

_With you right here, I'm a rocketeer"  
_

"_Nah, I never been in space before_

_But I never seen a face like yours"_

Austin cupped my face in his hand and ran his thumb along my jaw line while he sang.

"_You make me feel like I could touch the planets_

_You want the moon, girl watch me grab it"_

He actually mimed grabbing the moon and held out his hand as if he were giving it to me. I laughed and sang my part.

"_See I ain't never seen the stars this close_

_You got me struck by the way you glow_

_I'm like, oh, oh, oh, oh_

_I'm like, oh, oh, oh, oh"  
_

"_Here we go, come with me_

_There's a world out there that we should see_

_Take my hand, close your eyes_

_With you right here,_

_I'm a rocketeer"  
_

"_Let's fly..._

_Up, up here we go, go_

_Up, up here we go, go_

_Let's fly..._

_Up, up here we go, go_

_Where we stop nobody knows, knows, knows"_

We ended the song just staring in each other's eyes and I could hear the crowd cheering and clapping. When I finally looked at everyone, I realized what I had done. I just performed. _I just performed!_ And they…liked it.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the first performance by Ally Dawson!" Austin said into the mic and he twirled me around. I didn't know what to do so I curtsied. He pulled away from the mic to talk to me. "I'm gonna go. You don't need me do you?" he asked worriedly.

I took a quick look at the crowd, and shook my head. "Thank you so much, Austin." I said hugging him.

I felt him shrug. "What kind of best friend would I be if I let you humiliate yourself?"

"Friend." I murmured/laughed.

He pulled away and smiled. "We'll talk about it."

I took a deep breath. Only five more performances, and then the grand finale.

Austin POV

I watched as Ally sang her heart out with a smile on my face. She had come such a long way from nearly fainting when she had to sing in front of me.

Then I noticed who she was staring at and why she looked so sad. It was Dallas and Cassidy. They were slow dancing - the exact same way that I had predicted he would dance. Ally looked away from them and at the ground looking as if she were trying not to cry.

I clenched my fists in anger at Dallas. When Ally had first told me that Dallas rejected her I was able to hide my anger easily. But seeing him rub it in Ally's face – intentional or not – just made me want to punch something. Preferably Dallas.

When the song ended I weaved through crowd and tapped on Dallas's shoulder.

Both he and Cassidy looked up.

"Dallas, can I talk to you for a second?" I asked and he looked unsure.

"Um...okay."

He followed me out of the dance and towards a cabin. As soon as we were safely away from the dance I grabbed him by the collar and shoved him against the cabin.

"What the hell dude?!" He yelped and I shoved him against the wall again.

"You glare at me when I flirt with Ally, you flirt with her, you even KISS her. And you tell her that there's someone else?!" I said angrily and he looked scared. "I dont buy it! What makes you think that you can hurt the sweetest girl and get away with it?!"

We started yelling at each other so loudly that I could barely even tell what I was saying. Thankfully the music was so loud that no one could hear us.

"I see the way you look at her!" He shouted finally and I dropped him in shock.

"What?" I asked feeling confused.

Dallas dusted himself off and sighed. "I did like her in the beginning. A lot. But then I saw how you looked at her." He said and I sat on the bench that was outside the cabin. "I know we're not exactly friends, but I know it's not cool to steal a girl away."

"And how exactly do I look at her?"

Dallas shook his head and leaned against the cabin. "It's hard to explain. It's like, you look at her and it's like your eyes are panicked."

I stared at him. "Panicked? You changed your mind because of a look of panic?!" I exclaimed. "Dude, I probably said something stupid and I was afraid she was going to smack me or something." I lied. I knew exactly what look he was talking about.

Dallas shook his head. "It's more than that though. It's like...like you're afraid you're about to lose her. And even though you would be miserable, you would leave her alone if she asked."

"Wow." I sighed. "You got all that out of one look."

Dallas sighed looking exasperated.

"You got some issues. You might be turning into a girl, Dallas." I said clapping him on the shoulder and walking away.

I didn't want him to know the truth. Truthfully, I was in love with Ally Dawson. At least...I thought I was. I always knew that I liked her more than a friend but I never knew that I was in love with her. Only when I thought she had slipped into a coma.

"Why'd you disappear?" Ally asked when I walked up to the stage. It was finally time for the big finale.

I shrugged. "I had some business to take care of."

"You didn't beat Dallas up, did you?"

I stared at her feeling puzzled. "Um no. Did you want me to?" I asked and she laughed.

"No…well kind of." She admitted. "But I'm glad you didn't. It's time for the grand finale."

I nodded and looked around. "Wait, where's Cassidy? Isn't she supposed to be performing with us?"

Ally grimaced and shook her head. "She ate some of the camp's fish from Cootie Creek. She's sick."

"Then what are we going to sing?" I asked and Ally smiled.

"Actually, I had something prepared for this. Do you know the song Lucky by Jason Mraz and Colbie Calliat?" she asked and I felt my eyes widen slightly.

"Um, isn't that a love song?" I asked feeling nervous and she frowned.

"Yeah…do you not want to sing it? I can choose something else…" she trailed off and I shook my head.

"No, it's fine. I love the song." I said and she smiled.

"Good." She looked towards the crowd nervously and back at me. "Remind me how I'm going to do this."

I laughed and grabbed her hand. "Hey, I'm going to be right here with you. If you start to get nervous, just look at me."

I held onto her hand and led her back on stage. "Hello ladies and gents, unfortunately our time is coming to end, so here's one last song for you."

I grabbed my microphone in my left hand since my right was still in Ally's hand.

She gave me a nervous smile and we signaled to Rocky, our guitar player.

_Do you hear me?_

_I'm talking to you_

_Across the water across the deep blue ocean_

_Under the open sky, oh my, baby I'm trying_

Ally held on to my hand tightly, but turned so our hands waffled. She sang to me. She sang to me! Does that mean she feels the same? Oh my God, I'm turning into a girl like Dallas. I'm turning into Austina!

_Boy I hear you in my dreams_

_I feel your whisper across the sea_

_I keep you with me in my heart_

_You make it easier when life gets hard_

I fanned us out and then twirled her so she ended up with my arm around her, but we were still holding hands. We swayed together as we sang and I couldn't believe how true the first line of the chorus was for me.

_I'm lucky I'm in love with my best friend_

_Lucky to have been where I have been_

_Lucky to be coming home again_

_Ooh ooh ooh  
_

_They don't know how long it takes_

_Waiting for a love like this_

_Every time we say goodbye_

_I wish we had one more kiss_

_I'll wait for you_

_I promise you, I will  
_

_I'm lucky I'm in love with my best friend_

_Lucky to have been where I have been_

_Lucky to be coming home again  
_

_Lucky we're in love in every way_

_Lucky to have stayed where we have stayed_

_Lucky to be coming home someday  
_

_And so I'm sailing through the sea_

_To an island where we'll meet_

_You'll hear the music fill the air_

_I'll put a flower in your hair  
_

_Though the breezes through trees_

_Move so pretty you're all I see_

_As the world keeps spinning 'round_

_You hold me right here, right now  
_

_I'm lucky I'm in love with my best friend_

_Lucky to have been where I have been_

_Lucky to be coming home again  
_

_I'm lucky we're in love in every way_

_Lucky to have stayed where we have stayed_

_Lucky to be coming home someday  
_

_Ooh ooh ooh_

_Ooh ooh ooh, ooh_

"Goodnight everyone!" I said into the microphone and let go of Ally. She still clung onto my hand as we bowed.

"Have a good rest of the summer!" Ally said and we walked off stage.

I had to stay back to help clean up, and to my surprise, Ally stayed with me. I told her she should just go back to the cabin.

"No way. If we're going to do this we're going to do it properly, you know, minus the kiss at the end of the night…" She said stubbornly and sat on an amp.

It took me almost an hour to finish sweeping, but Ally waited for me. Like the gentleman my mom raised me to be, I took off my coat and put it on her. It was unseasonably cold, and judging by the weather reports, a storm was coming.

"So what did you mean 'minus the kiss'?" I asked nudging her with my elbow.

She laughed. "Well Cassidy thought we were going to kiss at the end of the dance…you're not going to kiss me are you?"

I shrugged and smiled cockily. "Well the night's still young." I joked and she rolled her eyes.

We stopped in front of our cabin and smiled at each other. She gave me back my jacket, and I tossed it over my shoulder.

"Are you sure you don't want that good night kiss?" I teased and she smiled. We started leaning in a little.

"Well, I don't want it to be awkward since we're roommates." She breathed and I nodded even though we got closer and closer to each other.

"There is that." I agreed but didn't pull back and neither did she.

"And, um, we don't want to lead the other on." She whispered and our noses were touching.

"But it is customary." I whispered back and her lips were centimeters from mine.

"Customary." She agreed and we closed the gap. I closed my eyes and I heard her sigh in contentment.

It was everything I hoped and expected it to be. My heart raced, and I was pretty sure that I wasn't breathing. I cupped her perfect face in my hand and we pulled back.

She smiled and we walked into the cabin.

"Austin?" she asked and I turned around eagerly but she was smiling in awkwardness. "It's awkward isn't it?"

I shrugged and smiled grudgingly. "A little bit." I admitted.

It didn't take us long to get back in and the awkward tension was so thick. I sighed and flipped upside down to look at her.

"Hey Ally, you're never going to guess who totally made it to first base with his Summer Fling date." I grinned at her and just like that, the tension broke, and our laughter shook the bed.

* * *

_Camp Days: 4 Weeks and 6 Days_

* * *

**Okay, so review your favorite part/line and your least favorite part/line even though I have a feeling that I know what part you guys like. And just so you know, just because they kissed, that does not mean that they are now a couple.  
**

**Fun Fact #9: The dance actually lasted only about 4-5 hours. The acts were Austin (6 songs), the regular hired band, and then Cassidy (6 songs), then Ally (6 songs) and then Austin and Ally.  
**

**Fun Fact #10: Even though the band is not really mentioned they are inspired by Ross Lynch's actual family band R5. i.e the guitar player Rocky, who in real life is the guitar player and Ross's brother.  
**


	10. Chapter 10: Video Presentation

**Ahem, just another warning. You may be pissed at me at the end of this chapter.**

**I do not own Austin & Ally.  
**

* * *

Ally POV

"Whatcha doin'?" Austin sang, practically flinging himself in my lap.

"Just working on my presentation." I said, saving quickly and closing Austin's laptop.

He smiled teasingly, making me smile immediately. "What, I don't get to see your presentation? You don't bad mouth me, do you?" he asked bumping me with his shoulder, and I bumped him back.

I sighed and laid down, putting my feet in his lap. "I just think it should be a surprise when we first see each other's presentations."

"Seems sensible. But I pretty much know what things were said in your presentation." he said. "It is about the most talented teenager in the world."

I laughed and gave him a small kick. "No, it's not. It's about how far we have come and our journey from hatred to comradery."

Austin stared at me. "You didn't happen to say that in the presentation, did you?" he asked and I shook my head. "Good."

He got up and ducked as my pillow sailed over his head.

"Austin, you need to go. I still need to film my first impression of you." I ordered and he scratched the back of his neck.

"Yeah, when you're done I need the camera." he said and I gave him a questioning look. "I need to redo my first impression."

"Why, do you bad mouth me in the first one?" I teased and he smiled.

"Would never dream of it." he said and walked out of the cabin.

I watched him go. Okay, time for complete honesty.

I really like Austin.

Ever since that innocent kiss that happened exactly a week ago, I couldn't focus on anything whenever Austin was in the room. My favorite shirt in still stained when I tried to eat tomato soup when Austin sat next to me.

I mean, I guess I always felt something. At first I had always thought that it was repulsion, but now I'm pretty sure it was attraction.

Really strong attraction.

"Ally, you here?!" Cassidy barged in right when I was about to talk.

I laughed. "Hi Cassidy." She walked in and Trish filed in hesitantly behind her.

Ever since the dance we've been okay with each other. We still weren't really back to normal, but I still somehow managed to confide my feelings for Austin in both her and Cassidy. "Hi Trish."

She smiled awkwardly and waved. Cassidy ran over and flopped on my bed.

"So whatcha doin'?" she asked and I gestured to the camera.

"Filming my first impression of Austin." I said. "Say hi to the entire camp."

Cassidy and Trish wove at the camera laughing.

"Did you think about telling Austin?" Cassidy asked and I shrugged.

"I don't know Cassidy. I mean, what if he doesn't love – I mean like me back?" I stuttered.

I wasn't particularly sure that I was in love with Austin, but these feelings I had for him were stronger than any feelings I've ever had for a boy. But honestly, who can develop love for someone in just a week?

"Wait, did you just say love?" Trish asked smiling slightly and I shook my head with wide eyes.

"Uh, no." I denied and Cassidy and Trish nodded their heads with grins on their face.

"You love Austin! Oh my God!" Cassidy squealed and I turned pink.

I turned to the camera and ejected the CD. "Obviously we're not going to be using this CD."

Cassidy swatted the CD out of my hand and it slid under the dresser.

"Ally! Do you love Austin?" she asked shaking me by my shoulders.

I pried her fingers off of me and brushed myself off. "Cassidy, I can't love Austin. I mean, I've only had these feelings since last week."

"I don't know Ally. Stranger things have happened." She said. "I mean, my parents met, and got married two weeks later. They're still together." She said seriously and my eyes widened.

"Your parents don't joke around." I said and Trish interjected.

"Besides, you told us that you've had that funny feeling in your stomach since you've met." Trish pointed out. "That was five years ago."

I shook my head. "But I can't love him!"

Cassidy blinked. "Um, why not?"

I sighed. "I only see Austin for 10 weeks a year, and it'll completely tear me apart if he breaks my heart."

Cassidy gave me a pat on the hand. "Well according to Dallas, Austin is in love with you." She said and got up. "I have to go finish up my project. I wish I thought of doing video."

"Tell him." The said in unison and walked out.

I waved goodbye to my friends and put a different CD into the camera.

I sighed and looked at the camera. "My first impression of Austin Moon?"

* * *

The next day was the presentation, and Austin and I drew last in presentation. I didn't really mean to be rude, but I didn't really listen to Trish or Cassidy's presentation. I mean, I caught a few tidbits. There was something about Dallas being afraid of monkeys and how Dez still drove Trish crazy, but she had come to realize that it was in a good way.

I was at crossroads and a war raged on in my head. Here Austin was, sitting next to me looking so amazing, and all I could think about was whether or not I should tell him that I loved – I mean liked him in boyfriend-girlfriend way.

"Ally." He whispered. "You're up."

I blinked and looked up in time to see Trish and Dez walking off stage.

I nodded and walked up to the stage. I faltered a bit and looked back at Austin who nodded encouragingly.

I sighed and walked on stage. "Hey everyone. Austin and I decided to present our videos separately. So, um, I guess that's it. Enjoy." I smiled and walked back to Austin.

The video started out with a clip I found of Austin and I arguing, but there wasn't any sound, just my voiceover.

"_It's no secret that Austin and I have a history." _There was an echo of agreement. _"My first impression of Austin Moon? Well that's a difficult question; because I met two Austin's." _

Austin gave me a weird look and we turned back to the screen.

A picture of an 11 year old Austin flipped on the screen.

"_There's the façade that Austin puts up with everyone that I've considered smothering in his sleep." _

Several people laughed, and Austin pretended to be offended but he smiled at me.

"_And there's the sweetest guy in the universe that has become my friend."_

A loud 'aww' echoed throughout the crowd as a video still of Austin and I out on the dock. He had his arm around me and I was laughing.

The video continued on with several cute videos for Austin and I messing with each other, and when the video came up of Austin admitting to me that he has dyslexia, several people looked our way in shock.

Austin was looking down at his hands, and his cheeks were red, so I reached over and grabbed his hand. He smiled at me and turned to the screen.

The last shot was a video that Dez had apparently taken while Austin and I were dancing at the Summer Fling. It stopped into a still and my voiceover went off.

"_My first impression of Austin Moon? When I really got to know him, and he opened up to me, he became one of my best friends." _

The video faded out and people began to applaud. Austin looked at me with a grin on his face.

"What?" I leaned in and asked.

"You called me your best friend." He whispered to me and I rolled my eyes.

"I guess I did."

Uncle Chip handed me my CD and Austin introduced his video.

"I hope you like it." He whispered and I smiled.

"As long as you don't bad mouth me, I'm sure I will." I whispered and he still looked scared and unsure. Weird.

His face appeared on camera and it shook as he set it up.

"_Alright so there is a 99.9% chance that my video won't be as, um…classy and graceful as Ally's video. But stick with me."_

Everyone laughed, and I nodded at him, to which he responded with a roll of the eyes. The video continued on and contained probably some of the sweetest things someone had ever said about me.

"_Something I learned about Ally also happens to be my favorite quality." _It cut away from him and showed me on the boat and I stiffened. Austin grabbed my hands like I had done with him.

But Austin had extended the clip to make it look more dramatic as I stared out into the water. The camera was angled just right so you could see both me and my reflection in the water.

"_She has a lot of layers to her. Everyone knows her as happy Ally. Ally the weirdo who actually likes reading." _

I delivered an elbow to Austin and he grinned cheekily.

"_But she harnesses a lot of pain, and is graceful enough to never let it show."_

"_My mom died." _Video Ally whispered loud enough for it to echo throughout the area.

There were several gasps and I saw almost everyone look at me in shock. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Trish bury her head in her hands.

The video went on to explain how and when she died and I could feel the sympathetic glances piling on me and I regretted ever admitting this.

The video had cut away to one of the filming days Austin scheduled. We were lying on the floor and the camera was crooked, giving a nice effect to the video.

"_I feel like it's my fault sometimes." _Video Ally said and the video Austin looked at me._ "Like maybe if my dad hadn't wasted so much time making sure was okay, he could've gotten to her in time."_

"_Ally, that's stupid. No one should blame you." _Video Austin said.

"_My dad does. We fought a lot more after she died, and every time he just looked at me and I could see it in his eyes." _

The video cut back to Austin. _"Ally handles a lot of stuff, and nobody really takes the time to thank her for it, or admire her for it."_

I looked at the real Austin, but he wasn't looking at me. The video continued and I decided then and there. Austin thought so highly of me…hopefully that meant he loved me back.

And yes, I meant love that time.

"Austin." I whispered lowly, but he didn't hear me. "Austin!" I hissed and was shushed.

He turned to me and leaned it. "What's up?" he whispered.

"I have to tell you something. It's going to sound crazy." I warned him in a whisper. He nodded warily. "Lately I've –"

"_Austin, no!" _Video Ally groaned and interrupted me_. "Austin, I'm sick!"_

My head snapped to the screen to see the video of me playing. The video I had specifically begged Austin not to put up. The video he promised he wouldn't put up.

I looked at Austin who was pointedly not looking anywhere in my direction.

The entire video continued, including me admitting that I wanted to leave Miami.

I swallowed back my anger. This wasn't a big deal. Right?

Austin appeared on the screen looking guilty. _"So obviously, Ally is going to be pissed at me when this airs." _A few people looked back at me and I must've looked silently furious because they turned back around quickly.

"_But I've done worse to her. So hopefully she won't be too mad at me." _Video Austin shrugged and smiled. _"She's my best friend and I'd do anything for her." _

And just like that my anger evaporated. He was too cute to be mad at over some silly video.

"_My first impression of Ally Dawson was the standard hormonal boy first impression of a girl, so I'll just preserve everyone's ear and not say." _Several people laughed and I delivered a not-so light punch to his arm. Okay maybe I was still a tid-bit angry at him. _"Again when I confess this Ally isn't going to be happy."_

I huffed. I didn't like this. _"In the beginning of the year I made this bet. A horrible bet that I don't even care about anymore." _Austin said quickly. _"I bet Dez that this would be the year that Ally Dawson would fall for me, and I would break her heart like some sort of sick game." _

The video cut off and when I looked at the projector Dez was holding the cord. It took me a minute to process what had actually been said and several people were staring at Austin who was still sitting next to me.

Suddenly it became too much. I don't know what it was. Maybe the fact that Austin was never true with me and played with my heart or maybe it was the haunting fact that my mom wouldn't be there when I ran into my room crying.

"Ally!" Austin shouted chasing after me as I ran as fast as I could away from the area. "Ally, please can we just talk?!"

I stopped and spun around with tears streaming down my face. "I asked you. I asked you from the start if there was anything I needed to know, and you lied to me."

I turned away to walk around but he reached out and grabbed my arm. I jerked my arm out of his grasp and turned around.

"Don't. Touch. Me." I said and walked away. He didn't follow me this time.

"Ally, you're my best friend!" he called after me and I turned around again.

"No, I'm not." I said slowly and angrily.

He swallowed and looked pained. "But you said –"

"Any opinion I had about you Blondie is now nonexistent. I don't want anything to do with you." I said and stormed away.

Austin POV

She left me standing there feeling like someone had stabbed me in the stomach with a spoon and twisted it for good measure.

Part of me felt like she was overreacting and the other part of me was on his knees singing Baby Come Back because he knew she was right.

I really blew it this time, but for the life of me I couldn't understand why she was taking this so badly. Unless…no. Don't even go there Austin, it'll just kill you even more.

I felt someone shove me out of the way and Cassidy and Trish ran by me after Ally.

I trudged back to my cabin and stood in the doorway as Ally began to move her stuff out. Even though we were only best friends, I couldn't help but feel like we were a married couple and Ally was leaving me in an empty house.

When I looked around the room it was shockingly empty. The bottom bunk was just an empty mattress. It was no longer the bed that I would sit on with Ally while we ate food and laughed.

I walked forward and sat on the bed and all I heard was the song Just Want You to Know by The Backstreet Boys. Pretty random, but then Dez walked into the cabin with his myPad blaring the song loudly.

"Hey buddy." He gave me a pat on the shoulder.

I felt the Ally-Heartbreak Disease set in.

"This is your fault!" I shouted at my best friends and started shoving him.

"Austin, what's –"

" Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up! SHUT UP!" I shouted at him, pushing him out the door and slamming it so hard that it actually creaked and shuttered.

I threw myself onto the carpet, too dramatic and angry to even make it to the bed. I looked under up and under the dresser. There was a CD; probably one of Ally's. I reached under it and grabbed it.

I popped it into my lap top to see if anything was on it. And there was something. A very important something.

Damn, I really screwed up this time.

* * *

_Camp Days: 6 Weeks_

* * *

**Review the usual, and let me know if you're or not :)**

**Fun Fact #11: I was in tears when I wrote this chapter, and it's probably my least favorite chapter.  
**


	11. Chapter 11: Promise Ring

**Okay so I'm going to say this now and at the end of the chapter, but THIS IS NOT THE LAST CHAPTER!**

**Oh, and I do not own Austin & Ally, or any songs mentioned in this chapter.  
**

* * *

Ally POV

The storm had finally hit. Seems fitting considering that I wasn't feeling as sunny as usual. I watched the rain pour over the camp.

I had been staying at Cassidy's cabin for the past two days and Uncle Chip still hasn't said anything to me. I haven't seen Austin at all and part of me longed to hear his laugh and see the beautiful light in his eyes. But the dominant part was pretty pissed off still.

"Ally?" I heard Cassidy and Trish walk in and I didn't have to look at them to see their sympathetic looks. Ever since Austin's video they've been walking on eggshells around me.

"This is why I didn't want to tell anyone." I murmured and when I looked at them they looked scared stiff. "I get enough sympathy back home. That's what I loved so much about camp. It was untouched by my mom."

Trish sighed. "Ally, we just feel sorry for you."

I shook my head and walked away from the window. "But that's the thing! I don't need you to feel sorry for me! My mom's been dead for 5 years! I've moved on!"

Trish walked forward with a hard look on her face. "No you haven't." She said. "I get it Ally. You're mad and stubborn and you hate the world. That's fine. Push us away, and fight back. But don't lie to yourself."

I stared at her. "Trish you can't tell me that I'm lying to myself."

Trish shook her head. "Ally when your mom died, did you ever cry?"

I stared at her angrily. "How dare you?! You are so out of line! Of course I cried! She's my mom!" I shouted and she shook her head.

"No, I don't mean the occasional tear." She said. "I mean the full on sob fest."

I swallowed and stared at my feet. "I couldn't. My dad shouldn't see his daughter break down."

"Stop that! Stop worrying about everyone else!" Trish demanded. "Ally, your mom died and your dad blames you."

I shook my head. There was a lump in my throat and my eyes prickled with tears.

"No. No." I denied and she went on while I shook my head.

"Your dad blames you for your mom's death and cant stand the sight of you." I closed my eyes as the tears leaked out but I continued to shake my head. "Ever since your mom died and your dad pushed you away, you had trust issues. Don't deny it, you did!"

I shook my head and held my head as sobs slowly raked through my chest.

"And the one guy that you trusted with everything lied to you."

"No."

"Yes he did. He lied to you and he hurt you." She said.

Why was she being so cruel?

"Stop it."

"He hurt you and the only person you want to run to is your mom." Trish said and I broke down.

I hit the floor hard on my knees and I bent so my forehead touched the ground. I gripped my hair like I was about to pull it out and sobs raked through me viciously.

Trish kneeled down and walled her arms around me. "Sorry about that. I had to get you to actually cry or else you would've gone insane."

I rested my head on her shoulder and couldn't respond because I was sobbing so hard.

Cassidy unfroze, walked over to us, and hugged me.

It took me a good 30 minutes to calm down and when I did we all sat around on Cassidy's bed talking and eating some stolen ice cream from the kitchen.

"You should talk to your dad Ally." Cassidy said. "From what I've heard so far, you haven't talked to your dad about how your mom's death affected you."

I shook my head and shoveled more fruity mint swirl into my mouth. "No way, it hurts him too much."

"But what about your pain, Ally?" Trish asked and put a spoonful of chocolate in her mouth.

"I can't be that selfish."

Trish and Cassidy gave me a frown. "No Ally. _He_ can't be that selfish. You're not the parent, he is."

I shrugged and we ate our ice cream in silence.

"I'll break up with Dez." Trish blurted out and I looked at her in shock.

"What? Why?!" I panicked. When she was with Dez, she looked so happy. Why would she do that?

She sighed. "He contributed to the Austin bet that hurt you. I'll break up with him if you want me to."

I shook my head quickly. "Trish, you're so happy with Dez…I don't want to destroy that." I said. "Besides, he didn't force Austin to go along with that bet."

Cassisy sighed. "Ally, why are you so upset with Austin? I mean, he seemed pretty sorry about what he said."

I sighed. "I just feel so betrayed. Everything he said was just to get close to me. I mean does he really have dyslexia or was that just a ploy?"

Trish and Cassidy gave me a sad look. "I still think you should talk to him about it."

"Why though?" I asked feeling a little annoyed that they weren't Austin like I was.

Cassidy sighed. "To be honest Ally, I never felt like your smile was genuine until you and Austin became friends. I just want that for you again."

I sighed, fought the urge to cry, and handed my ice cream to Cassidy. "Do you think you could put this away for me? I think I just need to lay down for a little bit and cry again."

"That's a lot of crying Ally. Are you sure your body has any moisture left?" Cassidy asked and I looked at her.

"Five years Cassidy. Five years." I deadpanned and she nodded.

She grabbed her umbrella and looked out the door, and froze.

"Um, Ally?!" she called and I sighed, not wanting to get out of bed.

Trish ran over to the door and squealed. "What are you doing?!"

"Is Ally in there?!" I heard someone call back faintly.

I wrapped myself in my blanket and practically rolled out of bed. I walked over to where my friends were standing.

"Who is it?" I asked even though I already knew who it was.

There Austin was, standing in the rain, already completely drenched and he had his rhythm guitar. His red shirt was darkened by the rain and sticking to every part of him, and his hair was dark blonde and fell into his eyes.

He saw me and started playing his guitar and despite the pounding rain, I could still hear what he was playing.

"_Once in a lifetime, means there's no second chance. So I believe that you and me should grab it while we can. Make it last forever, and never give it back." _He sang and despite my best instincts, I walked out of the cabin without an umbrella and walked forward until I was a few feet away from him.

"What are you doing here?" I asked with a neutral look on my face.

He slid his guitar behind him. "I need to talk to you Ally."

"I figured." I deadpanned and he grimaced. "Are you going to tell me that I should've watched the entire film and that would've made all the difference? Because that is _so _Geek Charming –"

He shook his head. "No. The rest of the video was just me explaining the bet and apologizing for it." He said. "Somehow I have a feeling that wouldn't matter."

I stare at him feeling confused. "So why did you come here if you're not going to apologize?"

"I am trying to apologize." He said. "Ally, the bet was stupid, and childish, and I just wanted people to think I was cool. It hurt you, and I will hate myself forever. I'm so sorry."

I looked at my feet and then back at my friends who were trying to be discreet in watching Austin and I.

They weren't doing a very good job.

"Look Austin, I don't care all that much about the bet." I said only loud enough for him to hear.

"You don't?" he asked quietly and I grimaced.

"Well, a little bit." I admitted. "But all those special moments between us, were they even real? Do you really have dyslexia or was that just a lie?"

"What did they say? I heard Cassidy ask behind me.

"Can you guys speak louder?!" Trish shouted at us and I turned around to give her a look. They both smiled guiltily and disappeared from the doorway.

"Ally, if you want the honest truth then no. Some memories we made I wasn't being entirely truthful." He said and I sighed. I turned to walk away but he ran in front of me. "But I really do have dyslexia! If I could just lie it away, I would."

I shook my head. "Wonderful, so you were honest with me once." I tried to step around him, but he got in my way again.

"Ally, I made that bet with Dez before I really knew you. When I got to know you, the bet didn't even matter to me anymore." He said sincerely and grabbed my hands which I kept limp and unfeeling. "I never expected to fall in l-l-love with you." He stumbled over the words and I froze.

"What did you say?" I whispered.

"I'm in love with you." He said breathlessly and I stood there gaping at him.

He took this time to lean down and press his lips to mine. I was so mind blown and surprised that I just stood there. But Cassidy and Trish's squealing brought me back to life and I pushed Austin away gently.

"Austin, you can't just kiss me and expect everything to be okay –" he caught me off with another kiss, and this time I was quicker to push him away.

"Will you stop kissing me for like three seconds?!" I shouted at him slightly breathless and slightly annoyed.

He closed his eyes and shook his head like he was trying to clear his thoughts.

"Right. Sorry." He apologized sounding amused. "I love you Ally and I will regret that stupid bet for the rest of my life."

I shook my head and ran my fingers through my incredibly wet hair. "Will you stop saying that?!"

He furrowed his eyebrows. "What? That I love you?"

"I can't have a summer romance Austin!" I exclaimed and began to pace.

He shook his head in confusion. "Wait, what?! When did we get on the topic of a summer romance?" he asked and I gave him a look. "Wait…do you still love me?"

I paused. "What do you mean still?" I asked suspiciously and he smiled cheekily.

"I, um, found that CD where you admitted you were in love with me." He admitted.

I turned red a little. "Austin, I do love you. But how do I know that you're not going to hurt me, or if this is still some part of your sick twisted little game?"

He opened his mouth but nothing came out and he sighed. "You don't. You just have to trust me."

I looked at him in the eyes and I felt a tear dribble down my face. I shook my head.

"I can't. I just can't." I cried. I went around him and he just stood there. I opened the door but didn't go in. "Get out of the rain Austin. You're going to get sick."

* * *

The rain had finally stopped by the next morning, and I was in the cafeteria staring at my breakfast mush unhappily. I had cried all last night, and I blamed Trish. Ever since she made me go into a sob fest yesterday, I couldn't stop crying.

"Are you sure you're okay Ally?" Cassidy asked and I nodded.

I sighed and got up with my tray. "I think I'm just gonna go back to the cabin."

She nodded and gave my hand a squeeze. "Feel better Ally."

I nodded and walked over to the trash can. I was about to open the door when Austin walked in playing his guitar with several dancers behind him.

"Austin, what the –" I started but he started singing and some of the dancers grabbed my hands and towed me around with them.

_On the other side of a street I knew_

_Stood a girl that looked like you_

_I guess that's deja vu_

_But I thought this can't be true_

_Cause you moved to west L.A or New York or Santa Fe_

_Or where ever to get away from me_

_Oh but that one night_

_Was more than just right_

_I didn't leave you cause I was all through_

Austin smiled as he sang to me in front of the entire while I stood there feeling completely shell shocked.

_Oh I was overwhelmed, and frankly scared as hell_

_Because I really fell for you_

_Oh I swear to you_

_I'll be there for you_

_This is not a drive by_

_Just a shy guy looking for a two ply_

_Hefty bag to hold my love_

_When you move me everything is groovy_

_They don't like it sue me __either way you do me_

_Oh I swear to you_

_I'll be there for you_

_This is not a drive by_

_On the upside of a downward spiral_

_My love for you went viral_

_And I loved you every mile you drove away_

_But now here you are again_

_So let's skip the "how you been"_

_And get down to the "more than friends" at last_

_Oh but that one night_

_Is still the highlight_

_I didn't need you until I came to_

_And I was overwhelmed, and frankly scared as hell_

_Because I really fell for you_

Austin pointed at me and had a very sincere look on his face when he sang the first line of the chorus. I couldn't help but smile at my little goofball. When the second line came up he mimed driving a car.

_Oh I swear to you_

_I'll be there for you_

_This is not a drive by_

_Just a shy guy looking for a two ply_

_Hefty bag to hold my love_

At the first line he did the classic disco which made me and several people laugh. At the second line he jerked his thumb in the direction of the crowd and then shrugged as if he were saying 'I can't help it'.

_When you move me everything is groovy_

_They don't like it sue me __either way you do me_

_Oh I swear to you_

_I'll be there for you_

_This is not a drive by_

_Please believe that when I leave_

_There's nothing up my sleeve but love for you_

_And a little time to get my head together too_

_On the other side of a street I knew_

_Stood a girl that looked like you_

_I guess that's deja vu_

_But I thought this can't be true_

_Cause_

_Oh I swear to you_

_I'll be there for you_

_This is not a drive by_

_Just a shy guy looking for a two ply_

_Hefty bag to hold my love_

_When you move me everything is groovy_

_They don't like it sue me __either way you do me_

_Oh I swear to you_

_I'll be there for you_

_This is not a drive by_

The song ended and the entire crowd stood up and cheered. Austin gestured for me to walk forward and I did so feeling completely blown away.

He grabbed my hands and smiled at me while he talking. "Ally Dawson, you are important to me. So important that I actually managed to write a song about you." There was an echoed laugh throughout the crowd and I giggled with tears in my eyes. I was so amazed and touched that someone would actually do something like this for me.

But then my eyes widened as Austin knelt onto one knee and took out a box.

"What are you doing?" I gulped and he opened it to reveal a ring.

"This is an engagement ring." He said and people started to whisper.

"We are not getting married." I said. "Get up, you're freaking me out."

He chuckled and several people echoed. "We're not gonna get married. I'm using it as a promise ring." He assured me. "Ally Dawson, I love you and will never love anyone else. I know I'm only sixteen, and it shouldn't make sense, but nothing does when I'm with you." He laughed and I started to cry. "But that doesn't matter. And I know that I hurt you, and I'm willing to make up for that any way possible… even if it means public humiliation or having to orchestrate something like this every day for the rest of your life."

I laughed through my tears and he took the ring out.

"This ring shows that I will do anything to make you happy. I'll put up with you gluing me to a bar and yanking down my pants. I'll hold your hair when you're sick and puking everything in your stomach." He said. "And all I ask in return is to wear this promise ring and give me the chance to treat you the way a beautiful, smart, funny, talented, and slightly annoying girl should be treated."

Everyone laughed including and I sighed.

"Will you stand up Blondie?" I said and he did as I said warily.

I grabbed him by the shoulders and brought him down so I could kiss him. He smiled and kissed me back. Then he picked me up and twirled me around.

Vaguely, I heard the people in the background cheering.

Austin set me down and slid the ring onto my finger. I smiled and hugged him.

"So…High School Musical 2? Really?" I whispered referring to the song he had sung to me in the rain.

He rolled his eyes at me. "It's the only song that I could think of."

I shrugged. "Well there's a few you could have used."

"Oh really; name three?" He challenged and I grinned at him.

"We Belong Together by Mariah Carrey, When You Look Me in the Eyes by The Jonas Brothers, and Over by Blake Shelton." I listed and he glared at me playfully.

"Show off." He mumbled as he led me out of the cafeteria.

I smiled. "I love you." He smiled and before he could reply I held up my hand to admire the ring. "So where did you even get a ring like this?"

"I ordered it online using Uncle Chip's credit card. So shh." He whispered making me laugh.

I smiled at him but when we looked away from each other the smile slipped from my face and my eyes watered at the thought of not seeing him again until next summer.

* * *

_Camp Days: 6 Weeks and 3 Days_

* * *

**And I repeat, NOT THE LAST CHAPTER! So you know the usual. Review your favorite line/part and/or you least favorite part/line. Oh and the songs was Drive By by Train and Everyday by The High School Musical 2 Cast. **_  
_

**Fun Fact #12: Ally tells Austin "Are you going to tell me that I should've watched the entire film and that would've made all the difference? Because that is _so _Geek Charming –". This was a reference to the fact that someone had reviewed and said that it reminded her of Geek Charming. I didn't realize, and that it was a funny coincidence.  
**

**Fun Fact #13: Originally, Ally was supposed to forgive Austin in the Rain Scene. But I didn't like the idea of her forgiving him immediately.  
**

**Fun Fact #14: The whole ring idea was inspired by an episode of Glee when Sam does the same thing with Quinn. Quinn even says "Stand up. You're freaking me out." NO COPYRIGHT WAS INTENDED.  
**


	12. Chapter 12: The Goodbye Scene

**Stop right there, and don't cry because WE HAVE 1 MORE CHAPTER AND AN EPILOGUE! **

**I don't own Austin & Ally or any songs mentioned in this chapter.  
**

* * *

Ally POV

"Thought of another one!" I sang and flaunted the piece of paper.

It's been an entire day since Austin and I became an official couple and we now have this running joke where I list songs that he could've used instead of Everyday.

So far the new Tease Austin Board was littered with dozens of pieces of paper with suggestions.

"Alright, let's see what we go here." He sighed looking at the paper. "Iris by The Goo Goo Dolls? Okay, I'll give you that one." He admitted defeat and I laughed.

I hugged him and pulled back to look at him. "Not my fault you chose a weird song."

He smiled at me and started leaning down to kiss me. I ducked under his arm and pinned the piece of paper. I gave him an uneasy smile and he sighed leaning against the dresser.

"Okay Ally. What's up? That's the fifth time that you've ducked my kissing." He said and I raised my eyebrows.

"You've been counting?" I asked.

He shrugged and gave me a smirk. "Well it's not every day that my girlfriend refuses to kiss me."

I sighed and sat on the bed. "I'm just preparing myself for the inevitable break up."

I think he stopped breathing and he completely froze.

"Austin?" I asked and he started breathing again

"Okay before I completely breakdown and embarrass myself in front of you, can you explain about this 'inevitable break up' thing?" he asked lying down and putting his head in my lap.

I sighed and began to run my finger through his hair absentmindedly.

"Austin, it's no secret that you're incredibly good looking." I said and smirked at me.

"Yep. Not a secret." He teased and I gave his head a soft smack.

"Hush child." I commanded teasingly making him chuckle. "Anyway, you live on the other side of Miami, so we probably won't see each other that much."

Austin nodded with a frown on his face. "Yeah, I've thought about that too."

I sighed and stopped playing with his hair. "It'll be just a matter of time that you find someone better than me."

Austin sat up and took my face in his hands. "Hey, didn't you hear what I said yesterday? Don't you understand the meaning of this ring?" he asked holding up my hand. "I love you Ally Dawson. You and only you."

I smiled and he leaned over to kiss my lips gently.

"Oh that reminds me!" I exclaimed and ran over to the desk. "Every Thing I Do by Bryan Adams." I read aloud and pinned it on the board. I looked back at Austin who groaned and flopped backwards onto my bed.

But then he sighed and got up. "Hey, I have to go set something up. You gonna be okay without me?"

I sighed as if I were hopeless. "Maybe, but only for a little while." I sniffed and he rolled his eyes at me. "I'll see you in a little while."

He chuckled and gave me a hug. "See you later best friend."

"Girlfriend." I corrected and he shrugged.

"How about BFF?" he suggested.

I shook my head while laughing. "You are blurring the lines of friendship and relationship."

He smiled and hugged me. "How about we'll be both?"

"My God, you two are sickening." Someone said from the doorway and we looked over to see Trish making a face in the doorway. "He'll just be gone for a few minutes, not a week."

Austin and I pulled away from each other. "Well it's better than arguing all the time." I stuck my tongue out at her.

"Don't tempt me Dawson." Austin whispered to me making me giggle and roll my eyes.

Trish shook her head. "Yes, but that works for me and Dez. Because instead of hitting him, I just kiss him and we move onto the next argument."

Austin looked at me. "Well I'm gonna go. Have fun with…well, whatever."

I rolled my eyes and waved him goodbye.

Trish smiled and held up some ice cream. "Uncle Chip called in new shipments since we stole and ate all of it."

I laughed and grabbed the fruity mint swirl tub of ice cream and we sat on the bed and talked about our boyfriends.

"Well, well, well." Cassidy leaned in the doorway and glared at us. "Looks like we're having a girls-ice cream-boy talk night. Oh wait, not we; just you two!"

Trish and I shared a guilty look. "Sorry. We just know that you're not dating anyone, and we didn't want to bum you out." Trish said and I grimaced at her.

"Yes Trish because that didn't sound cruel at all." Trish shrugged at me and put a spoonful of ice cream in her mouth.

"Hey! I do have…no boyfriend." Cassidy rushed out and we raised our eyebrows at her. "What?"

I sat up straighter. "Cassidy…is Dassidy a real thing?" I asked getting looks from my best friends.

"What the hell is Dassidy?" Trish laughed and I shrugged.

"I was told the other campers give camp couples couple names. Apparently there's Auslly, Trez, and Dassidy." I explained and they both made a face.

"Well what's Uncle Chip and Nurse Christine's couple name?" Cassidy asked and I gave her a look. "Oh come on, you didn't know they were together?"

I frowned and huffed. "How is it that _I'm _the unobservant one?" I shook my head. "Stop avoiding the question. Are you and Dallas together?"

Cassidy sighed. "No. We're not together."

"I'd be fine if you guys were. I'm with Austin now." I said and she huffed.

"Really! I'm not interested in Dallas!" she said and I gave her a look.

"Alright then." I scooted over, patted the spot next to me, and handed her a spoon.

After 30 minutes of talking and eating ice cream until there was only enough at the bottom, there was a knock at the door.

I walked over with my ice cream to reveal an irritated looking Uncle Chip.

"One, this is for you." He said handing me a piece of paper. "And two, stop stealing the kitchen's ice cream." He said taking all the ice cream we had.

Trish shouted after him. "Hey! You're stealing our stolen ice cream!"

She huffed and turned to me. "People can be so horrible sometimes."

I stared at her. "Okay, think about what you just said, and then get back to me." I looked down at the piece of paper and immediately smiled.

_Meet me at the dock in five minutes. –Your BFF._

Austin was so silly, but so sweet.

"What's that?" Cassidy asked and I read it aloud. "Ugh, you and Austin are sickening."

I laughed. "I guarantee you that you and Dallas would be the same way." She stuck her tongue out at me. "I'm gonna get ready!" I squealed and my friends took that as their cue to leave.

After brushing my hair twice and reapplying my make up, I practically ran to the dock.

When I arrived, there wasn't anyone in sight; just a canoe. I looked around and I noticed a small little island that was lit brightly. Did Austin do all this for me?

"Hey, you made it." I turned around to see…Dez?

I tilted my head to the side in confusion. "Dez?"

He smiled. "Yep. I set this up for a friend date."

I blinked. "A friend date? Dez, I'm flattered, but won't this give Trish and Austin some unhappy ideas?"

He shook his head. "No, Trish is fine with it, and Austin actually helped me set this up because…well, I don't know how to work a picnic basket." He said holding up the picnic basket.

I laughed and he helped me into the canoe. While he rowed us out, he gave me some grapes to eat…after struggling slightly with the picnic basket and almost flipping the canoe.

"So why did you send me that letter signed 'BFF'? I mean, we are friends, but not like me and Trish are." I asked.

"BFF as in best freckled friend, duh." He said and I stared at him.

"O-kay?" I said and shoved another grape into my mouth.

We landed on the small island that had some of the leftover Summer Fling lights.

"Okay, so let's see what we got in here." He said and began to struggle with the picnic basket again.

"Um, Dez? Dez! DEZ!" I shouted laughing. "Here, I got it." I said and popped it open.

He furrowed his eyebrows. "You make it look easy."

"That's because it is." I laughed and he pouted.

I was really surprised at Dez's choice in food. He brought juice, salad, crackers, grapes, soup, sandwiches, and brownies.

"More soup?" he asked holding up the canister and I shook my head.

"Oh goodness, no." I laughed and stretched. "I'm so full. Thank you so much Dez, this was really sweet."

He smiled and shrugged. "Eh, pretty much."

I laughed and laid down looking at the clouds that were turning pink and orange slowly. I felt him lay next to me.

"What does that one look like to you?" he asked and I smiled. This was something I was good at. I was actually president of The Cloud Watchers Club back home. Not that I would brag about that.

"It's a bunny eating a carrot." I said and Dez turned his head to the side.

"Really? I see a bunny breathing fire." He said and I smiled.

I tilted my head to the side. "Oh I kind of see it."

"Really?"

"No." we laughed together and it felt good to know that I had a friend in Dez. "Dez, I've had a great time, but why did you do this for me?"

He sighed and rolled onto his stomach. "I'm so sorry Ally." He said and I looked at him.

"Sorry for what?"

"I was a part of the bet that hurt you, and I'm sad about that." He sighed looking really guilty. I put my hand on his shoulder.

"Dez, I'm not mad at you. It's not your fault." I said, and he nodded.

"I know." He shrugged. "Doesn't mean that I don't feel guilty."

"Well don't. It's in the past Dez." I said and looked around. "How did you even find this place?"

He shrugged. "I found it while I was swimming and thought that it was a nice place."

I stared at him. "But…this is the Cootie Creek, and it's so far from camp."

"Yeah, and your point is?" he asked looking confused.

I opened my mouth to speak and shook my head. "Never mind."

As we rowed back, we talked. "So are you excited about leaving in 3 days?" I asked him and almost immediately, he shook his head.

"Definitely not." He said.

I nodded. "Don't want to go back to school?"

"Not just that." He said quietly, and rested for a little bit. "Nobody treats me like I'm a freak here."

I stared at him feeling sympathetic. "People…people treat you like that back home?"

He nodded and smiled grudgingly. "Who can blame them? I know I'm not normal."

I shrugged. "Normal's boring."

He smiled at me and continued to row.

"Hey Ally." Austin greeted when Dez walked me back to my cabin. "How was your friend date?"

I hopped into bed with him and laid my head against his chest. "Fun. I can see why Dez is your best friend." I looked up at him smiling. "So what did you do while I was gone?"

He smirked at me. "I re-did the board." I frowned and looked at the board.

It was no longer the Tease Austin Board. It was now the Austin & Ally's Totally Awesome Summer Board.

It had pictures of me, Austin, Dez, Cassidy, and Trish. It had the tickets for Summer Fling, the flyer for Summer Fling, and a list of songs that was called Our Playlist.

Austin wrapped his arms around me and I held back the tears in my eyes.

"I talked Uncle Chip into letting you take it home." He smiled at me. "That way you don't forget about me."

I laughed through my tears. "When did you get all cheesy?" I asked.

He rolled his eyes. "I'm not cheesy."

"Then are you fruity?" I gigged and he playfully glared at me.

"I'm not sure if I like you anymore." He grumbled jokingly and I laughed.

I turned around and hugged him, resting my head on his chest.

"I really don't want to leave." I whispered.

He sighed and kissed the top of my head. "Neither do I."

* * *

"Ally?! I know you're in here!" Uncle Chip called and pushed myself further under the bed.

"No I'm not!" I called. "Go away!"

It was time to go home, and yes, I was hiding. Call me silly, call me childish. I don't care. But I really didn't want to go.

The last few days I spent with Austin, Trish, Dez, Cassidy, and Dallas. It was still a little awkward with Dallas around, but with Austin's arm around me, I was in pure bliss.

"Ally, you can't stay in here forever!" he called back.

"Yes I can!" I shouted back and he looked under the bed at me.

He gave me a look. "Are you kidding me? Ally Dawson you are sixteen years old, and you're hiding under the bed?"

I nodded. "Yes. Yes I am."

He sighed. "Why don't you want to come out and go home? I mean, you usually don't want to leave, but this is just odd."

"Everything changed this summer, and I love that it did." I said. "If I go home, it will feel exactly the same."

"Are you sure that you just don't want to say goodbye to Austin?" he asked.

I was quiet and my eyes watered. "That too." I mumbled.

"Ally, sometimes the hardest thing to say is goodbye, but you're not saying goodbye to Austin. You're saying see you later." Uncle Chip said and I sighed.

"I'm looking like a clingy, desperate girlfriend, huh?" I asked and he chuckled.

"Well, I've seen worse." He said. "You gave Austin your number and email though, right? You'll still be able to talk to him."

I shook my head. "I've never wanted a long distance relationship. They never work."

"I wouldn't say never. You and Austin could be the two that make it work." He said. "And besides, why would you want that little punk around you 24/7?"

I laughed and sighed. "I better get out before his bus leaves." I said and looked at Uncle Chip. "I'm going to need some help."

He laughed, grabbed me by the arms, pulled, and I was free. I grabbed the Austin & Ally board and my bags and he walked me to the bus.

Trish was there waiting to get on the bus, but Austin was nowhere to be seen.

"Trish! Where's Austin?" I asked and she gave me a sad look.

"His bus left already. I'm sorry Ally." She apologized and I felt the disappointment spread through my body and my eyes watered slightly.

"Oh. Okay, I'll just, um, call him later." I said and she gave me a hug. "So did you get your big goodbye scene with Dez?"

She snorted. "If goodbye scene you mean 'I'll see you around doofus', then yeah. I got my goodbye scene." I gave her a look and she smiled sadly. "I'm gonna miss him a lot."

I gave her a hug. "I know. But you're just saying I'll see you later, not goodbye." She laughed.

"How poetic of you Ally." She giggled. "Come on, let's get on the bus."

I turned around to look at Uncle Chip. "I'll see you next summer."

"What, you're not coming to the wedding?" he asked and I smiled.

"When is that going to be?" I asked and he rolled his eyes.

"I have no idea. Sometime soon." He shrugged and gave me a small hug. "See you around, kid."

I nodded. "See you around old man." He glared at me and pointed at me as he walked away.

"Watch yourself Dawson." He said and for once, I didn't watch him walk away.

* * *

_Camp Days: 7 Weeks (End of Camp)_

* * *

**Again I repeat that this is not the last chapter. We have 1 more chapter and an epilogue left. So review the usual favorites and least favorites.**

Fun Fact #15: The couple name for Uncle Chip and Nurse Christine is actually Chiptine.  


**Fun Fact #16: Ally and Austin were supposed to have a goodbye scene, but it was cut from the chapter.  
**


	13. Chapter 13: After Camp

**It took me awhile to get this out and I apologize for that. I just started school again, and I have to memorize a minute long monologue and perform it in front of the entire class, so I've been a wee bit stressed...**

**I do not own Austin & Ally or any songs mentioned in this chapter.  
**

* * *

Ally POV

I gave Trish one last hug as I stepped off the bus. My dad was waiting there by the car and we shared a very awkward hug.

"How was camp?" he asked as we got in and I smiled.

"It was amazing. I performed for the first time and…" I hesitated not knowing if I should tell him about Austin.

"And what?" he asked glancing at my board suspiciously. "Did you get a boyfriend?"

I blushed and brushed a piece of hair behind my ear. "Um, yeah actually. He gave me a promise ring."

My dad gave me a wide eye stare and I shook my head. "You don't have to worry; I'm not going to get married to him." I assured him and he nodded.

"So what's this kid's name?" he asked with a 'threatening' tone but his smile ruined it.

I laughed at his 'threatening' tone. "Um, Austin Moon."

My dad stopped the car and stared at me. "You mean, _the _Austin Moon? The one you come home complaining about every summer?"

I giggled sheepishly and nodded. "He's actually really sweet, and nothing like I expected."

He nodded his head and undid his seatbelt. "Wait till you see what I did to your room."

Warily, I made my way up the stairs and into my room. It wasn't what my dad had done to my room it was what he put in it. And what he put in it was absolutely amazing.

"Oh my God!" I squealed and ran over tot eh new grand piano that was sitting by the window. "You got me a piano?! Thank you, thank you, thank you!" I squealed and hugged him.

He cleared his throat. "It's not exactly new, it's, um, your…mom's." he winced and my smile fell.

"Why did you move it from her music room?" I asked. My mom had a music room at our family music store Sonic Boom. We had kept everything in its place and I sometimes went up there to practice, and write songs.

He scratched his neck. "Well, I was going to turn it into a spare room where we could store the new shipments until there is more room."

"What? But that's mom's music room." I protested and he shook his head.

"Well…Ally! Wait!" he called as I had dropped my backpack and ran out the door.

Luckily, the mall was only a block away from my house so I didn't have to run far.

"Hey Ally!" Georgie, one of the employees at Sonic Boom, greeted me.

I ignored him and ran up to the music room. As soon as I opened the door, I was hit with my mother's perfume. She had spent so much time in here that it actually smelled like her, and since the room had never been tampered with, the smell stayed intact.

I closed the door and sat at the keyboard with my eyes closed, tears streaming down my cheeks. I wasn't really sure why I was reacting so badly, but this was my mom's room. How could he just make a decision like this without seeing how I would react?

I took out my phone and dialed Austin's number.

"_Hey Ally." _Austin answered.

"Hi Austin. I just needed to call you because –"

"_Unfortunately, I'm a bonehead and missed your call. Just leave a message, but if you're not Ally, then just leave a message as well." _

I sighed and shut my phone angrily. I threw a fit and my phone hit the wall, but didn't break.

After a short cry, I reached into my pocket and unfolded the piece of paper that I kept with me at all times for fear that someone would find it.

I put the paper and on the small holder and began to play the keyboard. It didn't have the same effect that it did on the grand piano, but it was still good.

_I will not make the same mistakes that you did  
I will not let myself  
Cause my heart so much misery  
I will not break the way you did,  
You fell so hard  
I've learned the hard way  
To never let it get that far_

_Because of you  
I never stray too far from the sidewalk  
Because of you  
I learned to play on the safe side so I don't get hurt  
Because of you  
I find it hard to trust not only me, but everyone around me  
Because of you  
I am afraid  
_

I paused for a second to clear my throat because the crying had created a lump in my throat that made my voice sound hoarse and weak.

_I lose my way  
And it's not too long before you point it out  
I cannot cry  
Because I know that's weakness in your eyes  
I'm forced to fake  
A smile, a laugh every day of my life  
My heart can't possibly break  
When it wasn't even whole to start with  
_

I cried harder, but strived to make sure that it didn't affect my voice. I wasn't that lucky.

_Because of you  
I never stray too far from the sidewalk  
Because of you  
I learned to play on the safe side so I don't get hurt  
Because of you  
I find it hard to trust not only me, but everyone around me  
Because of you  
I am afraid_

_I watched you die_  
_I heard you cry every night in your sleep_  
_I was so young_  
_You should have known better than to lean on me_  
_You never thought of anyone else_  
_You just saw your pain_  
_And now I cry in the middle of the night_  
_For the same damn thing_

I practically screamed the last line. I bowed my head, and my entire frame shook with the sobs, but for some reason I felt obligated to go on. I took a steadying breath and continued.

_Because of you  
I never stray too far from the sidewalk  
Because of you  
I learned to play on the safe side so I don't get hurt  
Because of you  
I try my hardest just to forget everything  
Because of you  
I don't know how to let anyone else in  
Because of you  
I'm ashamed of my life because it's empty  
Because of you  
I am afraid_

_Because of you_  
_Because of you_

I put my face in my hands and just sobbed. It was amazing how once you let loose all the 5 year old bottled emotions; you really just let them all go.

"Ally?" I turned around to see my dad standing in the doorway with wide eyes. I quickly wiped at my eyes.

"Dad, um. Hi." I said wincing at how my voice cracked.

"You're crying. I've…I've never seen you cry before." He said quietly, making his way over to me.

I sighed and it all bubbled out. "Exactly Dad. I've had to bottle up every bad feeling since mom died, and I can't do it anymore." I cried and he wrapped his arms around me.

"You shouldn't have to." He sighed.

"But that's the thing. I had to, for you." I said and explained everything to him. How he made me feel, how I felt like I had to act, everything. He didn't take all of it easily, he cried and yelled a little bit, but I finally stood up to him, and I think we were better because of it.

"Can you please not tear down the room? Please?" I pleaded quietly after a moment of silence.

He sighed. "It's a room Ally. It isn't your mother."

"But it is to me." I said. "I feel like she's sitting next to me whenever I'm working on a new song, and it gives me inspiration."

"Like that song you just sang?" he asked and I was quiet. "It was about me wasn't it?"

I nodded wordlessly and he sighed.

"How old were you when you wrote it?" he asked quietly.

"Dad, it's not a good idea –" I started but he gave me a look and I sighed. "I was thirteen. Uncle Chip gave us an assignment to write a song about what we were feeling inside. I wrote this song at first, but then I pocketed it and wrote some song about being afraid of blending in." I explained and my dad shook his head.

"Ally, I'm out of sync with a lot of things, but I can tell when you're lying to me."

I grimaced. "It was my first summer without Mom. The year you sent me to camp." I admitted and he grimaced. "I've edited it a little over the years."

"You have so much talent." He said. "And anger." He added and I shook my head.

"Not really; well, anger at least. Only at first." I assured him.

He stood up and turned to me. "As long as this room means something to you, I won't tear it down." He promised making me grin. "I just feel bad for Georgie. He's the one who has to lug that piano back here."

I laughed as he walked out of the room.

* * *

It's been almost a week, and I haven't heard from Austin. So as you can imagine, I was a wreck.

Even though my relationship with my dad had been repaired, being home was still tough. The little boy that I taught piano, Nelson, continually flirted with me – well, as much as an eight year old could flirt – and I was still receiving looks of pity from everyone in the mall.

I found myself ditching work to just spend time at my mom's grave. It sounds a little weird and depressing, but it was comforting to sit there and talk to her…even if she couldn't hear me.

"I just…I don't know if this relationship is going to work if he doesn't call me." I said to her and my phone started to ring. "Hello? Austin?" I answered immediately.

"I wish I had that kind of hair." My dad responded and I forced out a laugh, feeling disappointed. "I need you to come back to the store. Some guy is playing one of the instruments and he's causing a ruckus."

I sighed. "Aright. I'll be there in a second." I said and hung up. I put my bag on and turned back to my mom's grave. "I guess I'll talk to you later."

I had to ride my bike to the mall and considering that the cemetery was incredibly far from the mall, I was out of breath by the time I got into Sonic Boom.

"Where – is – the –trouble maker?" I gasped at my dad. As far as I could see, the store was pretty quiet, and not too busy.

My dad sighed. "He moved into the practice room."

"Why didn't you just throw him out?" I asked feeling slightly agitated.

He scratched the back of his neck. "Well –"

_Oh I swear to you_

_I'll be there for you_

_This is not a drive by_

_Just a shy guy looking for a two ply_

_Hefty bag to hold my love_

I froze. The words, the voice, the song…sure it was the acoustic version of the song, but I could identify it anywhere.

I turned around slowly, and there Austin was, standing on the balcony with his guitar.

"Austin?" I felt my eyes widen as he made his way down the stairs. He set his guitar down and I immediately ran into his arms.

He held me for a good thirty seconds until I pulled away and started hitting him.

"Ow, ow, ow! Damn woman! Why are you hitting me?" he asked sounding amused.

"Why didn't you call me?!" I demanded crossing my arms and pouting.

He gave a nervous laugh and scratched the back of his head. "Well you see, I thought our reunion might be better if we hadn't contacted each other…" he admitted and I rolled my eyes.

"You're an idiot." I said, grabbed his shoulders, and yanked him down for the long awaited kiss. I heard my dad clear his throat awkwardly and I think he left but I was too absorbed in Austin. I pulled away unwillingly. "So, why are you here? Or…how?"

He smiled and we sat in the lounge area. "I talked to my parents, and practically begged them to let me come here. And after a talk with Uncle Chip and Nurse – or soon to be Aunt Christine, my parents are willing to let me move in with Uncle Chip as long as I get a job and maintain good grades."

I tilted my head to the side and grinned. "Uncle Chip lives here?"

He nodded. "Yeah, he just moved. Unfortunately, I'm going to be attending your rival school with Trish and Dez. But I still expect you to tutor me." He teased bumping me with his shoulder.

"Wait, Dez goes to my rival school too?" I asked and he nodded. "Does Trish know?"

Austin shook his head. "I don't think so…how convenient." He mumbled. "All we need is for you to transfer and Team Austin would be complete."

I raised my eyebrows at him. "Team Austin?"

He laughed. "What? It flows nicely."

"We will call ourselves that when hell freezes over." I promised him and he pouted making me laugh.

"Come on, I'll walk you home." He said and he did.

As we walked I explained to him what happened with my dad, and it actually took so long, that it ended right when we got to my driveway.

"Wait," Austin looked around. "This is where you live?"

I blushed, embarrassed by my regrettably small house. "Yeah, it's not exactly much." Austin grabbed my hand and began towing me away. "Um, where exactly are we going?"

He didn't answer me. He just went three houses down and then crossed the street. To my shock, Uncle Chip answered the door when Austin knocked.

"Ally? What are you doing here?" he asked sounding appalled.

"You and Nurse Christine are the new hot couple that everyone has been talking about?" I asked, and shook my head to clear my thoughts. "I just, um, I live right over there." I said pointing to my house.

After that I spent most of my time over at Uncle Chip's, and it got so bad that I actually hadn't had dinner or lunch with my dad in a week. That and I hadn't been to my mother's grave in the same amount of time.

After this realization, I had decided to cancel lunch plans with Uncle Chip and ditched work to go see my mom.

Of course, the weather decided to hate me, and it rained that day. However, I still rode my bike despite the weather, and I sat in front of her grave while the rain completely pelted me.

"Hey mom, it's been a while since I came to talk to you, but I'm here now." I said.

We – well more like I – chatted for the longest time. I was soaked to the bone, and absolutely freezing, but I didn't really care.

"Ally? Is that you?" I heard behind me and I turned to see Austin standing under a tree, still a bit wet but as soaked as I was.

"Austin? What are you doing here?" I asked and I stood up, not caring to brush myself off.

"I saw you ride your bike over here, and I got worried because of the weather." He said and I gestured for him to come over to me.

"Austin, I'd like to introduce you to my mom." I said and he smiled.

"Hi Mrs. Dawson." He said and whispered to me, "She's intimidating."

I laughed. "Mom, Austin means a lot to me if you remember our extensive talks."

After a few more seconds of a respective silence, Uncle Chip ran over to us from the car and said that 'unless we wanted pneumonia it's a good idea to get in the car'.

I took a long hot shower, and decided to look up my rival school that just so happened to be populated with all my friends.

"Dad!" I shouted from my computer. "Dad!" I screamed and there was a loud sound of what sounded like someone nearly falling down the stairs.

My dad came running in with a pan. "What?! What happened?!"

I shook my head. "Put the pan down and look at this!" I pointed at the screen. "My rival school Miami Beach Heights is closer than my school!"

"And more expensive." My dad muttered scratching the back of his neck. I gave him a desperate look.

"Dad, they have an amazing musical education program!" I exclaimed. "I would learn so much more than I do at my school now."

"Ally –" he started and I gripped his hand pleadingly.

"Please Dad? Please?!" I begged. "It would mean so much to me!"

He sighed and nodded hesitantly. "Alright, I'll put in your transfer. And I have a friend on the school board."

I squealed loudly and he covered his ears. I threw my arms around him quickly and ran out the door.

"Where are you going?!" he asked, and I looked back at him.

"I have to go tell Austin!"

* * *

**I hate to cut it off there, but I really wanted to get this chapter out. 1 more to go! Please review!**


	14. Epilogue

**This is it. The last chapter. There's also a very important AN at the bottom of this chapter so please read it.**

**I don't own Austin & Ally.  
**

* * *

Austin POV

"Ally, would you hurry up?!" I shouted from her living room and her head peeked over the staircase. I gave her my best 'what the hell?' look.

"It's a process Austin! I have to make sure I look perfect today!" she shouted back and I heard her run back to her room.

"Come on Ally! It's not like you're the bride!" I called back and she was at the staircase again.

"Austin, I have to make sure that I look good enough for you, but not so good that I outshine the bride on her big day!" she exclaimed sounding exasperated and she disappeared from the staircase again.

I looked around and stepped on the stairs planning to get a peek at Ally's dress. She had been keeping it on lock down and it was driving me insane.

But as soon as my foot was planted firmly on the step, I heard her.

"Austin Moon, don't you dare come up here!" she shouted and I sighed.

Ten minutes from when we were supposed to leave passed by and Ally finally walked down, and it was that movie-type, slow motion walk.

She was wearing a short, strapless blue dress that matching the button up I was wearing underneath my jacket. The dress had black embroidery on the top and bottom, and she was wearing a light blue bracelet.

"You look beautiful Ally." I said and she frowned.

"Crap. That means I have to go ugly myself up!" she growled and turned to go up the stairs.

"No!" I exclaimed, grabbed her wrist and towed her outside. "We're already late and I'm one of the best men! Plus, you're the photographer; you were supposed to be there early!"

She grumbled a little bit, and maybe I broke the speed limit once or twice, but we made it right when I was supposed to go down the aisle.

"Where have you been?!" my soon to be aunt whisper-yelled at me.

"Sorry Aunt Sophie, the photographer wasn't sure how to dress." I gave Ally a look and she smiled sheepishly.

"It's fine Austin." Aunt Sophie turned to Ally and smiled. "Oh you're really pretty."

"Thanks! I love your dress!" Ally giggled and I rolled my eyes at the girl talk and Cassidy came running down the stairs from the main room looking like she was about to burst into tears.

"Cassidy, what's wrong?!" I stopped her and she huffed.

"I'm supposed to be the Maid of Honor, but for the life of me I cannot get that bridezilla out of the stupid room!" she squeaked with tears on the brim of her eyes. "Uncle Chip is going to be so mad at me!" she cried and before she could ruin her makeup, Ally cut it like the good friend she is.

"Wait, you're the Maid of Honor?" she asked. Okay, not the gentle and caring approach I expected.

Cassidy nodded. "My dad is Aunt Christine's second cousin. We're actually pretty close." She did a double take at Ally and she smiled. "Can you go talk to her?"

Ally's eyes widened and she began to stammer. "But – but, I'm just the photographer! I'm not fit to be a bridesmaid stand in!"

"Ally, you're great at motivational talks." I told her, and after a few more complaints, she walked upstairs.

Ally POV

I knocked cautiously on the door and opened it to reveal…an empty room.

"Um, Nurse Christine?!" I called closing the door and was welcomed by the sound of throwing up.

I ran over to the bathroom just in time to save the veil and her hair.

"Are you okay?" I asked and she looked at me. "Right; stupid question. Sorry."

She moaned and rinsed her mouth out. She sat on the couch and shook her head.

"I can't do it, Ally." She whispered. "I can't get do this to Chip."

I began to fix her up and as I was placing her veil on her head I tilted my head in confusion. "Can't do what? Make his dreams come true, and marry him?"

"I'm pregnant Ally." She whispered looking up at me with tear filled eyes, and I froze as my eyes filled with happy tears. Jeez, so much crying today.

"And what's so horrible about that?" I asked and she shook her head.

"I didn't want this. I never wanted to be married with a baby on the way at 25." She whispered, and I sat down next to her.

"Listen to me. You're marrying and carrying a great guy's baby." I said. "He's going to be ecstatic when you tell him – if you tell him that is. And he's already great with kids. I know you're young, and you're scared, but isn't that part of growing up?"

She smiled at me. "16 years old and you're already smarter than I am." She laughed and hugged me. "Thank you Ally. You're truly a great person."

I smiled and shrugged. "It's what I do."

After redoing her makeup, Nurse Christine was walking with me down the staircase just as Austin was getting ready to walk down the aisle.

"What happened?" he whispered and I shook my head.

"Nothing. You'll find out later." I whispered and he laughed quietly but then pouted.

"Why are you always the first to find out things? I'm their nephew!" he objected and I laughed.

"Save me a dance." I commanded kissing his cheek, and running to my set up camera.

It wasn't as easy as I had wanted to take the pictures considering that everyone was hustling down the aisle as if they were being timed.

The ceremony was absolutely beautiful and it was my guess that she had told Uncle Chip about the baby while the minister was talking because their kiss was extremely passionate.

I was supposed to ride to the reception with Trish, Dez, and Dallas but after pulling me into the guest bathroom of his grandparents' house, Austin was running so late that he actually towed me into the limo with him.

I got plenty of beautiful pictures at the reception, and I was about to catch another great picture of Austin dancing with Nurse Christine, but I felt someone tap my shoulder.

"Hey Ally." I looked up to see Dallas smiling at me and I immediately felt awkward.

Even though I was dating Austin, it was still excruciatingly awkward to be alone with Dallas. After all, I did have really strong feelings for Dallas once upon a time, and he rejected me.

"Dallas, hey." I smiled awkwardly and he gestured to the dance floor.

"Care to dance?" he asked and I chewed on my lip. "It's only a dance Ally."

I sighed and tapped Dez on the shoulder. He had been sitting at a table next to me alone since Trish was working. "Dez, can you take over the pictures while I dance for a little bit?"

"Sure." He shrugged and Dallas led me to the dance floor.

He placed his hands a little higher on my waist, and I wound my arms around his neck. To say it was awkward would be an understatement of the century.

"You and Austin make a good couple." He said breaking our awkward silence.

I smiled and looked over at Austin who was watching Dallas and I, with narrowed eyes. "Yeah. I love him."

"That stings a little." Dallas admitted and I gave him a look.

"Why would it? _You _rejected _me_. Remember?" I said and he shrugged.

"Believe it or not, I actually did have a crush on you. Didn't Austin tell you?" he asked and I shook my head. "Plus, it's kind of an ego killer when a girl moves on from you so quickly."

I shrugged and gave him an awkward smile. "It's kind of an ego killer when your crush rejects you for a friend."

He chuckled. "Touché."

I think that was the moment that things with Dallas patched up. It was no longer uncomfortable whenever we talked and laughed. But the time became short when Uncle Chip walked over.

"Could I steal her away for a moment, Dallas?" he asked and Dallas gave me up.

"How does it feel to be a married man now?" I asked as he twirled me around and he shrugged.

"Feels pretty good actually." He admitted.

"So was there a reason that you decided to steal me away or am I really that irresistible." I joked and he laughed. I saw Dez catch a picture of us.

"Well it was never my dream to have my nephew kill someone at my wedding reception." He said and I looked over at Austin who finally looked like he was enjoying himself.

I grimaced, but then smiled. "Well, it's nice to know he cares."

Uncle Chip chuckled and nodded. "Thank you by the way." I furrowed my eyebrows and he shrugged. "Christine told me what you said. I wanted to thank you."

I shrugged. "It's all true. She probably would've realized it on her own though." I said and he nodded. "Are you nervous?"

He nodded quickly. "Incredibly. I never imagined that I would be a father at 25."

I smiled. "Don't worry. You'll always have help, and I live close by so I'll always be there to babysit."

He frowned and shook his head. "No you won't."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "Huh?"

"You said that you wanted to get out of Miami as soon as you got the green light." He said looking sad. "What could possibly change your mind?"

I looked over at Austin and smiled fondly. "I have a reason to stay."

* * *

I sat at my table net to Trish while the speeches began. Cassidy actually cried while making her speech talking about how close she was with Nurse Christine, while Austin's dad decided to take the hilarity approach and embarrassed the hell out of Uncle Chip.

Austin stood up with a glass filled with apple juice looking a little nervous.

"So everyone knows that I'm not good with words." He started off, and gained a few chuckles. "But what some people don't know about me is that…I never believed in love."

I frowned and Trish looked at me confused. Was Austin trying to make a point or something? Was he breaking up with me in front of all these people?!

I was 30 seconds away from hyperventilating when he continued.

"Uncle Chip and I have been like brothers since I was born, which a lot of people aren't fortunate to have. So after like, 3 weeks of dating Aunt Christine he was like 'Austin man, I'm in love. I can't imagine life without her'. I thought he was a total fool, and I thought that he had to be insane."

I was pretty sure that I had stopped breathing, and I was gripping Trish's hand tightly.

"But I finally understood what Uncle Chip had been talking about." He admitted and I let out a breath of relief and he looked directly at me. "I met and fall in love with my best friend Ally Dawson this summer, and I know what you guys are thinking, 'you're 16, you have no idea what love is' but Ally makes my world go 'round."

I blushed and my eyes welled up. There really was too much crying today.

"I act like a jerk 99.9% of the day, and a lot of people let it pass, but Ally will call me out on it, but she doesn't care. She laughs with me, she cares about me, and she actually enjoys spending time with me." Everyone laughed including me. "I don't mean to make this toast about me, so I'll end it now before I get too mushy. Uncle Chip, I am so happy that you've found someone that makes you feel the way that Ally makes me feel."

I snapped a picture of Austin raising his glass. "Here's to Uncle Chip and Aunt Christine. Here's to their love, and mine."

The speeches finished and I walked over to my boyfriend who immediately smiled when he saw me.

"Hey –" I cut him off with a punch to the shoulder. "Ow!" he squeaked rubbing his arm.

"Austin Moon, you suck!" I growled but then hugged him.

He wound his arms around me tentatively. "So…did you not like my speech?"

I buried my face into his chest. "Your speech was beautiful." I looked up at him and he was looking incredibly amused. "But I was convinced that you were breaking up with me in front of your entire family and friends for like, half the speech."

He laughed and kissed my forehead. "Come on let's dance."

I listened to the song playing and smiled. It was Over by Blake Shelton.

"You're so silly Ally Dawson." He chuckled and I frowned at him.

"I'm not silly, I'm paranoid." I mumbled and I laid my head on his chest.

He sighed. "I never want this to end."

I pulled away and looked at him feeling confused. "What are you talking about?"

"I heard you talking to Uncle Chip about how you were going to attend the community school with me after high school in Miami." He said.

I nodded and shrugged. "Yeah, so what?"

"Ally, the last thing you want is to be stuck in Miami, and I don't want to be the one who roots you to the spot." He said and I stared at him.

"Austin, I said I wanted to leave Miami because there was nothing left for me here. But you came along, and now I have a reason to stay." I said.

He shook his head. "Your dreams are too big for a small place in Miami."

"Austin, we both have big dreams. I figured that we were going to chase them together after a year in Miami. I don't want to be without you." I said and he smiled at me.

"You won't have to be." He said and I laid my head against his chest. "I just don't want you to give anything up for me."

"I'm not Austin." I sighed and that was good enough for the both of us.

**So that was the last chapter of this fanfiction and I really hope you guys have enjoyed it. I want to thank everyone for their continuing support, and love. **

**However, there is one announcement that I would like to make...I'M MAKING A SEQUEL!  
**

**I was at odds when it came to this because I could not, for the life of me, decide what it would be about. Because greats fans like you guys deserve a great sequel. It will be awhile until it comes out because like I said, great fans deserve a great sequel. Stay with me, and be patient. i want this to be perfect.  
**

**Moving on, all the clothes from the wedding will be available to see on my profile except for Austin's. His outfit is basically the same outfit from Club Owners & Quinceaneras.  
**

**Also, I will be posting a FAQ chapter, so if you guys have any questions just PM me or review your questions and I will be sure to include them in the FAQ chapter. There will be some deep meaningful questions in it, so you guys should check it out. It might be fun. And you can ask any question, any at all. About the author, the story, or the characters.  
**

**So review and I'll miss you guys :)  
**


	15. FAQ

FAQ

_THERE'S GOING TO BE A SEQUEL?!_

…**yes…**

* * *

_When will the sequel be out?_

**Oh goodness, there isn't really a date set, but I'm estimating that I will be done perfecting the story around the middle of September. **

* * *

_Are Dallas and Cassidy together? Because I totally ship Dassidy. _

**Oh, I love this question. No, Dallas and Cassidy are not together. I still kind of want to play with them a bit.**

* * *

_You like to put a lot of music in your chapters; can you play any instruments or anything?_

**The only instruments I can play are my vocal chords, and I play them pretty badly. They're strictly reserved for the privacy of my shower though.**

* * *

_So Austin and Ally left on a relatively good note (pun intended). How the hell are you going to make a sequel that was just as interesting as the original?_

**First of all…nice pun. I enjoy them. And second of all, I have my ways of spicing things up, which I shall not reveal at the moment. Patience is a virtue.**

* * *

_How much do you love your fans?_

**A lot. They are the peanut butter to my jelly. Except…I want to be the peanut butter so you guys are the jelly…**

* * *

_Can you give us fans any hint about the sequel? Something juicy._

**Fine, I'll throw you guys a bone. Uncle Chip and Nurse/Aunt Christine have a daughter in the sequel. Please keep the squealing to a minimum. **

* * *

_Do you have any future projects in mind other than The Mysterious Sequel?_

**Not yet. I get my best ideas when I'm in the shower and when I run, so I'll let you know. But right now I just want to focus on The Mysterious Sequel, Tunnels & Terror, and Sonny With a Chance of Abuse. **

* * *

_What's the title of the sequel going to be?_

**I have a title in mind, but when I post the story the title will be The Mysterious Sequel. **

* * *

_When I used the link to see the wedding dress it was your pinterest, and the picture was on a board called My Future Wedding. You already planned your wedding, you lunatic?_

**Yes I have. Uncle Chip's wedding is my dream wedding. Don't judge me. **

* * *

_What's your favorite Austin & Ally song?_

**So far, it's a tie between Not a Love Song and The Way That You Do. **

* * *

_How big of an Austin & Ally fan are you?_

**I'm a big time Austin & Ally fan. I know tons of facts, know every episode title, and know the actors' names. I know a lot. More than my little brother who introduced me to the show…I need a life. **

* * *

_Have you seen the promo for Albums & Auditions? What are your thoughts?_

**Oh jeez. I saw the promo and I cried. I actually cried. But I actually did see this coming because they have talked about the importance of their friendship and how much Austin needs Ally, so it was time for this story line to come to light. **

**For those who haven't seen the promo yet, go watch it. **

* * *

_What the hell was in that box in chapter 2 that made Austin freak out?!_**  
**

**Hahahaha. I had fun with that. Anyway, they were tampons.**_  
_


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